Where We Belong
by ChicaNikki149
Summary: Michael and Nikita always had an undeniable connection, a secret love, a lust for the other. But despite the odds against it, they're getting back to where they belong. R&R Please.
1. Heated Encounter

Nikita had just finished kicking ass against a large, muscular secruity guard outside of a posh penthouse apartment before entering a posh penthouse apartment, making a mad dash towards a gawdy painting on the wall. "No accounting for taste," she mumbled and removed the frame from the wall, revealing a wall safe. She entered the number and opened the door, immediately finding what she was in search of. The black box. However, the high she momentarily felt from succeeding this mission disappeared when she heard the all too familar sound of a gun cocking and soon a smokey voice accompanying it.

"Weapons AND box on the floor; Hands in the air."

Nikita rolled her eyes, "Michael..."

"Now!"

He was so frustrating she thought to herself. She bent down slowly and placed her gun on the ground, the black box lying next to it. She then heard him add, "And the knife", so she placed the blade on the plush white carpet too. She stood up straight and turned to face him, palms where he was able to see them. She smirked and Michael, in turn, swallowed hard. Any way her lips contorted, he found it hard to focus, until she brought him back to the subject.

"I thought you tried to stay away from Percy's dirty work."

"And I thought you never did what you're told," He countered, trying to avoid the accusations she had thrown his way.

"Well if anyone would know, it would be you," Nikita meant it sincerely, but could have been percieved as sarcastic.

The two stood in silenece for a minute, niether knowing the next move. Michael was the first to break the tension in the air when he cleared his throat.

"Slide the box over here and we can be done with this whole thing."

"You want it? Fine, fight me for it," Michael's eyebrows raised at her suggestion so she explained further, "No weapons- just hand to hand combat."

He took a chance and lowered his pistol and smirked, "Now why would you want to risk your pride that way?"

Nikita walked closer to him with an old, playful sparkle in her eye and his breath hitched in his throat. She was confident though, being in close proximity to Michael was hard and most notably tempting, but its when she performed the best, "I think you're just terrified that I'll kick your ass; that the student will surpass the teacher...again."

A smirk found its way onto Michael's face unintentionally again. He holstered his gun and strode across the floor to where the pair were only mere inches apart, if they were going to be close, he was going to make sure he was confident enough to handle it.

"I'm not terrified of anything," He whispered in his husky, sexy voice and suddenly Nikita felt a sharp jab to her abdomen. She released a groan that Michael found strangely arousing. However, she was quick to come back and they were quickly in a full on sparring match. They moved rapidly, but each were able to counteract eachother's moves. Finally, Nikita was able to get him in a headlock underneath her arm, but he surprised her by flipping her backwards over his shouldar. She regained composure and went after him once more.

But in the middle of their brawl, Michael mistakeningly lost his footing, entangling him with Nikita as they both crashed onto the floor of the apartment. Him ontop of her. An immediate rush of deja vu flooded both their minds but only for a moment because the only thing they could concentrate on was the intense lack of space inbetween them. Nikita could feel Michael's hot breath brushing against her face and he could distinct every curve on her body underneath his own.

After a few moments of peering into eachother's eyes, their stares dropped to eachother's lips. It had been so long since their lips last locked; too long. Before he knew it Michael found himself leaning down, while Nikita was being drawn upward. Finally, their lips caught one another's and it was as if an electirc shock within them imploded.

Nothing else in the world existed except for them and the scorching heat sparking between the couples while savoring eachother's taste. But the deep kiss wasn't enough, especially for Michael. He yearned to have the rogue agent's hot skin rubbing against his; to kiss every spot of body she owned. He had to be that intimate with her, he needed her and more importantly, he wanted her. Finding her arms, he forcibly griopped her wrists and pinned them over her head. Nikita smirked against his lips, he was trying to show her that he was in control and she was more than fine with that, but she wasn't going to allow him to get too bog of an ego boost. She unfortuantly tore her lips from his, him making due by planting passionate kisses down her neck. When he was close enough to her, she arched up so her lips were grazing against his ear, "You know I can be rough too Michael." She proved her point by biting down on his earlobe, hard, drawing blood. Michael groaned, but couldn't resist a smile curving on his lips. He retaliated in full force, ripping open the button down, white blouse she was wearing, no dubt for her cover to enter the building , though the intial reason they had both arrived at this apartment was totally forgotten at this point. He kissed down her chest and to her stomach, throughly enjoying the pleasurable moans he erupted in her.

Nikita had to even the score, psuhing off his black blazer and then quickly undoing his black shirt. He was swift to assist her and when he discarded it on the floor beside them. She pulled him back down on her, however, the after a few moments of fiery smooches, he pulled back ever so slighty.

Their noses were touching, but Michael could clearly see into Nikita's eyes. The look said a thousand words and it was all that needed to be said before his lips descended onto hers. It didn't last long though, nor could they fully give themselves to one another because there were suddenly rumblings outside of the room. The couple , breathing heavily, eyes shot to the entrance and they were able to get up and throw on their clothing in record time.

Michael was the first to have his gun out of holster and poised to defend, "Take the box, go to the bedroom. First door on the left, elevator disguised as a closet takes you down to a private exit." He didn't extract his eyes from the door.

"Michael..."

"Go!" He snapped, but softened his tone as he finally pealed his eyes off the door and glanced at Nikita, "I can't protect you and the box." He thrust his blazer towards her and with one last look she was gone. 


	2. Speculation and Third Parties

A/N: OK so first off, to anyone who read and reviewed the first chapter of this fic, THANK YOU SO MUCH! It really means alot to me. I love writing and I love Nikita and this pairing even more so I hope I did/do alright :) I am SO excited for April 7th and waiting for it is seriously killing me. LOL. If you're a hardcore Mikita fan I'm sure you feel the same. So keep R&R because it rocks my world! LOL

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING. If I owned Nikita, trust me it would not be on hiatus. -

Nikita had followed Michael's instructions. She pulled the blazer around her in the elevator, covering the exposed parts of her body that her now ruined blouse couldn't. Leaving Michael to deal with the owner of the apartment was not what she wanted, but staying might have made it worse. If the black box resided there, chances were Percy was in cahoots with whomever lived in it. However, that was a week ago, but Michael's scent still lingered on the jacket. She sat on a chair in her lair, staring at the jacket that rested on the table top of her desk, beside her computer system.

Whenever her eye caught sight of the jacket, confusion arose. She had known she had feelings for Michael since the first time she met him (although she'd never tell him that); She fell in love with him sometime during her training at Division and she knew he felt the same.

When she was promoted to field agent and on the outside they thought it would be easier. But Nikita was always questioning the black ops group and he was always so unquestioningly loyal, to say the least, it was frustrating for both parties. Then Daniel crossed her path. He was a replacement, a safe bet. She loved him, sure, but never was truely IN love with him; she only loved the fraction of a normal future that came along with him. Her feelings for Michael never disapated- that was shown various times now. On their mission to take down Kasim, when she almost confessed her love for him on the rooftop while going after Alex, and obviously just seven das ago when they almost had sex in the middle of a stranger's penthouse. Normally, people with such strong feelings for one another would just be together, but Michael and Nikita were not normal.

The confliction came with the same thing it always did- Division. He was in, she was out. He was Percy's second in command, she was Percy's biggest threat. He felt obligated to stay, she wished he didn't. "God this is such a mess," She mumbled to herself, but didn't have time to contemplate further thoughts because a specific knock was suddenly upon her door. Alex. The young protege entered the home, talking a mile a minute.

"Alright so I had to have a half hour conversation with Amanda, the Ice Queen, yesterday about me in her words 'not adjusting to my new lifestyle like a typical young female would'. Really? Sense when are trained assasins supposed to act typical? I swear, it took all that was in me not to take that stupid red stilleto on her foot and shove it up..." But the light haired bruntte abruptly stopped after she sat down on the stool in front of the computer and saw her mentor's vacant expression.

"What's up with you?" When Nikita didn't respond, Alex spoke louder. "Hello! Earth to sensei!"

Nikita finally snapped out of her trance, "Yeah, hey, whats going on?"

Alex stifled a laugh and cocked her head to the side, a questioning look in her eye, "No way. You can't act all spacey for the first time... well in all the time I've known you, and pretend everything's normal. Did something happen?"

"No," Nikita answered quickly, too quickly.

"Mhmm..." Alex responded, not believing the answer she was just given. That's when she saw the jacket, "Ooh so this is why you were out of it! Whose is it?" The excitement in future details dripped from her voice and she gasped, "Is it Ryan's?" The former Russian reached for the clothing artical but Nikita practically ripped it out of her hand.

"No, it is not Ryan's."

It whizzed by Alex and as the gust of air hit her, she detected a familar, unnameable aroma. "OK that is definitely a dude's jacket because I've smelled that cologne before."

"Probably just from a miscellanious mission, speaking of which.." Nikita desperately wanted to get of this subject.

"Michael!" Alex burst out, practically leaping from her stool. With her back to her, Nikita silently cursed her partner's impecable sense of memory. She braced herself, turning to face her sidekick while tossing the blazer aside on a chair.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," She said cooly, but it was too late. Alex's eyes were as wide as car tires and her smile spoke volumes.

"Liar! What happened? How did you end up with his coat? Ohmygod, I knew there was something between you two, I knew it!"

"Alex- stop, it's nothing. We... were fighting over the black box I told you about. Luckily, I managed to get it so another score for us."

Alex bolted around the room and held up the controversial item, "And he took off his jacket in the process? Was he afraid to get it dirty or something" She practically giggled.

Nikita rolled her eyes, "And the ice queen says you don't act like a normal young woman." She threw a smirk towards Alex who reponded by sticking her tognue out. The younger of the two women sighed and dropped the blazer, and slouched onto one of the chairs.

"Fine. Don't tell me," She crossed her arms, "I can put two and two together by myself."

Nikita laughed, "Alright Einstein, well in the mean time we need to talk about this new op."

Michael couldn't stop thinking about her. Even more than usual. A week ago he had her in his arms, on his lips, all the dreams he had since she left were coming true- and yet again, reality interfered. He wanted to see her, but knew the next time he would he'd be working for Division and she'd be trying to stop them. They'd cross paths, hold up their guns and maybe even throw a few punches, but it'd end the same as it did every other time. He'd let her leave and have to lie again to protect them both. The pattern was simple enough to know by now- it didn't mean he was OK with it.

He had to vent his frustration, so he forced the recruits to evacuate the training room and began pounding into the punching bag. Even being in this room made him ache for her and it made him more bitter than he already was that he wasn't able to be with her. He hit harder.

Nikita was unlike any woman he had ever met. She was headstrong, breathtaking, brave, caring, sexy, frustrating, and everything else on the spectrum. He loved every one of those qualities and he threw a punch for each one. It started off normal; He treated her like the other recruits that were brought in. But it was soon clear that she was special, not just as a recruit but as a person. He couldn't recall the exact moment he fell in love with her, but he knew when he fell out of it- never. Although, she left him for Daniel, left him for freedom, and even ruined his chances of killing Kasim, he just couldn't find the strength to abandon his feelings for her, nor did he believe he had any control over it.

He struck the bag harder and harder until he had to take a momentary break. He leant against the bag and his mind (surprise, surprise) drifted to her again, but just for a second because a new, annoying voice was heard from behind.

"Jeez Mikey- I knew you had some anger, well, issues, but seriously what'd that bag ever do to you?"

Michael groaned, "Not now Birkoff." He resumed hitting the baf, but the tech made his presence clearer when he came in front of the bag and into Michael's sight. "No I completely get it dude. You screwed up a mission- a really important mission..."

"Is there a point to your rambling or is it just your mission in life to annoy me?" Another slam to the beaten bag.

Birkoff jumped slightly and soon regained composure, "I bet it was Niki."

This made Percy's golden boy come to a halt, "What?"

"You know, our girl."

"She's not OUR girl," Whenever the computer genius made comments about Nikita, it seemed to always irk Michael, but he really was not in the mood to hear them today.

"Alright, I get it; You're territorial, I meant YOUR girl..."

"Birkoff, fast forward to the point. What about Nikita?"

"Well you told Percy when you got there, the box was gone. It just smells like Niki to me."

Michael growled under his breath- he didn't need to be reminded of her smell; Her intoxicating, overwhelming scent. "Could be," He vaguely replied, "But there are other people interested in those boxes."

"Whatevs. Hey maybe its that Owen dude again- Nikita and him could be working together again."

The bag shook with intensity again, "I doubt it."

"Why not? They obviousy made a good team, they were able to save that, what's his name? The CIA punk that brought me in? Anyway, he looks like Niki's type.."

"He almost got her killed the past two times they 'worked' together!" The exclamation was not planned, and Michael regretted saying that much in front of one of Division's biggest loudmouths. These points were proven when Birkoff came over and put a hand on his boss's shouldar.

"I know deep down its hard for you to hear about Niki with someone else; I wish she was still here too. But don't worry, I got your back my brother. But a word of advice, don't let Percy hear you say crap like that. He'd have you canceled faster than you can say shadownet." Michael glared at him and the computer nerd spoke again, "By the way, ear piercings gone bad- not sexy, Fabio."

And with a pat on the back, Birkoff left. Michael involuntarily lifted his hand to his ear to where a small remanent of Nikita's bite still remained. He needed to see her. Immediately.

A/N Part 2: So sorry there was no Mikita interaction! But I wanted to get their feelings across and I didn't want it to be TOO sappy, because while I think Michael and Nikita can act different with one another, I don't picture them as super sappy so I added Alex and Birkoff LOL. Next chapter WILL be all Mikita and should be up soon :) 


	3. Finally

A/N: Seriously everyone, you rock! I love the reviews I've gotten for this story so far and even ones who read it and didn't review I SO appreciate it! I love Mikita and this hellatus SUCKS so bad so I can assure you I will not be abondoning this fic. LOL. I'm hoping to start another soon, since I should have this one finished up quickly (fingers crossed). Anyway, here is Chapter 3 and as I said, this is full on MIKITA action, so enjoy! And please tells me your thoughts through review or Twitter. I love to hear them :)  
-

It didn't take long for Percy to assign Michael to a new mission of damage control after an op gone bad had arisen. Nikita was, as per usual, at the center of the drama and the head honcho had given Michael the typical orders: control the matter at hand and if the rogue agent was stopped permanently, all the better. However, his second in command was secretly pleased. Michael and Nikita needed to talk or at least see one another. He told Birkoff back up was on a call-only basis. The tech geek made a quip about the ridiculousness of him flying solo, but Michael evaded the comments swiftly.

He arrived at the the scene of the office building where an executive with, in Percy's words, "too much so-called knowledge" works. Waking in, he surveyed the entrance and saw nothing he did not expect, broken secruity cameras, a passed out guard, and the secruity alarm disabled. Nikita had definitely been there and now the question was, was she still there? Michael got his answer as he heard rumblings of footsteps on what sounded like stairs. He followed the noise, withdrawing his gun out of habit. He caught Nikita and a middle aged man at the backdoor of the building and raised his pistol. Upon hearing the noise, Nikita whipped out her weapon as well. Then their eyes locked and the wrong type of adrenaline began pumping during this mission within both.

"Go," Nikita ordered the man, who was sweating and clearly nervous, glancing between the gun wielding pair. Despite her instructions, the business man was now fixated on Michael and his hardware.

Seeing this, Michael timidly lowered the weapon, "Listen to her."

After the confirmation, the man sprinted in the direction Nikita had told him to, leaving the savior alone with a slightly agape mouth. She watched the Division victim run to the car where he would be transported some place safely.

"I assume you have someone to take care of him," Michael stated in his normal gruff tone.

She turned back to her ex-trainer, still stunned, but cleverly hiding it, "He's safe... for now." The tone was pointed and Michael understood what she meant.

"If he keeps a low profile, I'll make sure Division doesn't touch him."

Nikita closed the door, finally allowing her state of shock to be shown, "You just let a target of Percy's go."

"As long as he's gone, my job is done."

"Percy's version of gone is very different, Michael," She walked closer to him and they both holstered their guns, they were alone. She finished her thought, "And how are you going to explain that I got away again? I'm sure after the incident with the black box you aren't treading lightly." A small smile was pulling at her lips and he picked up on it and smirked.

"I trained you well, not that far of a stretch."

"Keep using that excuse and Big Brother will replace you with someone less qualified, too frightened there will be another recruit like me."

"There would never be another recruit like you," His voice was low and they couldn't keep their eyes from one another.

They stood in silence before Nikita interrupted, "I have your blazer, not with me though..."

"You could keep it, afterall, you left me with this great parting gift," He lightly teased, touching his punctured ear, "Birkoff thought I tried to get a piercing." At this bit of information, Nikita couldn't help but choke back a laugh. Michael then added, "It could match the one from where you shot me."

She rolled her eyes and walked closer to him, "So dramatic," she jested. Reaching out, she touched the ear they were discussing. Michael shivered inside from the contact and feeling a piece of his warm flesh, Nikita did too. The magnetic pull that had first drawn them to one another, the one that made them so confortable with eachother that they knew the other's most intimate secrets, the one that made them such a great team, and the one that kept making it impossible to stay away from eachother, was stronger than ever. She initiated the first bit of speech-again- after another soundless minute, "But if you're really in pain."

She reached up a placed a ligh kiss on his marked lobe. But one arousing touch was all it took. Similar to what happened in the penthouse, a spark had fueld and the fire erupted between them as their lips collided. Both had been desiring the other since their last heated encounter and now they couldn't get enough of eachother. Nikita pushed him up against a wall, while his hands explored her body's figure. She snaked her arms around his neck and his went to the bottom of her thights and hoisting her up with ease. Her legs hugged his torso and he flipped their positions so her back was now kissing the wall. She worked on his shirt, and he kissed from her lips, neck, and after forcing aside her leather jacket, her shouldar.

In spite of the immense pleasure, Michael retracted, his head leaning against her shouldar as he tried to control his breathing.

"What? What?" Nikita demanded breathy, not comprehending the reasoning behind the sudden halt.

"We can't do this..." He explained, sighing as he felt her legs escape his waist.

"Michael!" Nikita groaned, irritated by his sudden change in direction, but he lifted his face, their noses nearly brushing and their eyes smoldering into eachother's.

"I meant we can't do this here. Come to my place." The invitation was a concept that she didn't need to think twice about.

The door was barely ajar when Michael and Nikita busted through it, locked in a heated liplock. They were strewning clothes across the wooden floor and they crashed into a wall in the hallway.

"Michael... Division...," She exhaled, but he put a finger to her lips until his were able to catch up and kiss them.

"No, no Division. Just you and Me," He mumbled against them and she cringed at the thought that she was about to intrude on their moment again.

"But..."

Michael once again, pulled back slightly, "There are no bugs, no cameras, nothing." He emphasized the final word and she smirked, capturing his lips again. They finally entered the bedroom, collapsing on the king sized mattress.

It was a few hours later as the couple laid in bed. Beneath Michael's black cotton sheets, Nikita's back was against his bare chest and his arms firmly around her waist. Michael slowly looked down at her, to see her eyes closed. A smile of contentment spread across his lips, that matched the one on her sleeping face, for the first time in a very long time. He placed a gentle kiss on her temple and then skipped down to her naked shouldar.

"I will NEVER let them hurt you," He whispeered into the night and kissed her seemingly glowing skin . He laid his head back down on his pillow, ready for sleep.

After a beat, he suddenly heard, "I know."

Both smiled brightly with eyes still closed. Michael tightened his hold on her and they snuggled closer.

End of chapter 3 and Mikita are finally together! Yay! LOL.


	4. Do You Really Want to Leave

(A/N: OMG first things firt: Have you guys seen the new promo? If you haven't you NEED to! .com/watch?v=_XVK0tCkopo I am heavily addicted to it! Our Mikita is SO epic and beautiful you guys! Anyway, I could rave about it all day long but I have a chapter to get to right? LOL. Thank you AGAIN for all the amazing reviews! I thought no one would even read this story let alone leave amazing comments like you guys have! 3 I so appreciate it and I hope you continue to read and review. :) And April 7th is in 20 something days folks! Closer than we were right? haha)

Disclaimer: I do not own ANYTHING. I just created the plot. The show, the characters, everything else belongs to CW. If I owned Nikita it sure as hell would not be on hiatus.  
-

"I will never let them hurt you."

"I know."

The dialogue (along with the events that led up to it) replayed in both their heads as they slept. Michael could have throttled everyone within Division when Nikita almost put a stop to their actions because of the black ops group. He knew it was his own fault; he could've left Divison, should have left years ago when she did, or even before that. In Uzbekistan when she had asked him to reassess his life, he should've agreed to join her right then and there. He had believed for so long that Percy had saved him, given him a new life, help him achieve revenge against Kasim and be the only one to understand why it was so important. But Micahel had now realized Percy hadn't done those things- Nikita did.

After what happened with his wife and daughter, Nikita had been the only person he had opened up to. She taught him how to laugh again, smile again, cry again, and love again. He had tried to protect her as much as he physically could since she reentered Division's orbit, but after the events that took place tonight, he knew he had to do more. Letting her go was not an option and he'd die before Divison could lay a finger on her.

It was like music to her ears when she head him say the wrods. She never doubted his protection over her, as soon as she entered Division the only person she trusted was Michael. Even the night in the alley many months ago, he said he couldn't protect her anymore, but he did just that by letting her go. After that he shielded her, "the enemy", multiple times, even when he was risking himself by doing so. This was why she replied with a confident, "I know". But hearing the words, it gave her hope, something she had denied herself from having for a very long time. Sure she "hoped" Division would be brought down, she "hoped" that she could shoot Percy between the eyes, and "hoped" she could help innocent victims along the way, but those were all things she could MAKE happen. Michael, on the other hand, you couldn't MAKE do anything, hope was what it had required, and falling asleep in his arms gave her an immense burst of hope.

Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and she deduced it was still extremely late (or very early) as not a hint of light was coming through the window. Looking over her shouldar she saw Michael, sleeping soundly, and a small smile pulled at her lips as she witnessed him lying there peacefully. It was so un-Michael like, however, this whole situation was out of the ordinary. Niether of them opened up easily, especially not with so much at risk.

Risk. Normally Nikita thought over everything- this she hadn't. What happened with Michael, she hadn't thought of the implications, she went with her instincts. But instincts were dangerous and the more she pondered, the more wary she became. Michael was Division, unless she had missed something, that hadn't changed. And now they had both made the situation more complicated than it already was. Damn impulses, she thought to herself. But it wasn't just instincts or impulses, it was feelings; that was even more lethal.

She gingerly lifted the muscular arm that was holding her, sliding out from underneath the warm comfort of the bed and of Michael's body. But before he feet even combed the floor, there was suddenly a tight grip on her wrist, and with a start, she spun around.

"Where do you think you're going?" Michael, eyes still shut, inquired with grogginess dripping in his voice.

"I forgot you're a light sleeper; That's really annoying by the way," She lightly teased.

He grinned, "Mhmm... at least I don't snore."

"I don't sn-" But she knew he was trying to get her riled up so she'd remain in her spot and argue instead of her original plan. "Go back to sleep," She whispered, leaning down and kissing his cheek.

And yet despite the peaceful goodbye, as she shifted to exit the bed, the grip on her wrist was now deathly. She tried to release herself, but ended up being yanked downward. Michael, now fully awake, enclosed her in his arms as she struggled to escape his grasp.

"Michael, let me go!"

In response, Michael positioned himself on top of her, "Do you really wanna leave right now?" His voice was low and husky and a tickle spread up her spine. Lowering his head, he nudged her nose with his own and then moved his lips to a tender spot on her neck, making her moan.

However, Nikita took Michael by surprise by flipping him over so she was now on top and straddling his hips. While he normally demanded being in charge of things in all aspects of his life, this situation he was pleased with. He ran his hands up her thighs and she smirked down at him.

"I really hate it when you're right." 


	5. Breakfast and Movies

Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Nikita belongs to its rightful owners.

Nikita awakened to sunlight pouring through the large window in Michael's bedroom and right on her. Lazily, she turned her face away from the window, hoping to bury herself away from the day and to use Michael as a shield. However, when she stretched her arm out all she felt was empty mattress beside her. She sat up and glanced around the room: no Michael. Confused and slightly worried, she slipped out the bed and hastily threw on her undergarmets and Michael's button down shirt. Chances were no one else was there, and besides if she could kick ass in a ball room gown and heels, she could certainly do it in a man's shirt.

Opening the door, she tiptoed down the short hallway until she came to the open living space. The sight that confronted her was a remarkable surprise; She had to bite her lip to resist the impulse to laugh. She leant against the hallway wall and allowed herself to silently enjoy the view.

Michael, dressed in a black t-shirt and pajama pants that hung low on his hips, was moving expertly around the kitchen in his apartment. The TV was playing on the big screen in the living room that dipped down a step from the culinary room, although Nikita couldn't understand how he'd even have time to glance at the screen with several pans on the stove.

After a minute or two she decided to make her presence known, "You're losing your touch."

Michael, surprisingly, didn't turn around, but was wearing a large grin, "How do you know I wasn't just ignoring you?" He teased playfully, but despite his joke, he did not expect to see the sight he did. She was donning his black shirt from the previous day, with only a few buttons fastened. The clothing item's rim barely reached the thigh of her stunning legs. Her hair fell effortlessly over her shouldars. He not-so-subtley licked his lips, eyeing her up and down once more. Nikita saw the way he was gazing at her and knew her morning attire had been approved (although she knew all along it would).

"What are you staring at?" She seductively inquired walking towards him as he used the remote to switch off the television.

"Nothing," He smirked in return and she backed him up against the edge of the counter. He hands slid up onto his shouldars and his automatically snaked around her waist. She reached up and Michael was anticipating another enticing kiss, however when their lips were about to touch, she spun her head in the direction of the stove. He laughed in her hair in spite of himself.

"So what are you cooking?" That still sounded like such a weird thing for Nikita to ask him, but the mouth watering aromas convinced her she wasn't dreaming.

"Well, a little bit of everything actually. Pancakes, eggs, potatoes, vegetarian bacon..." But as soon as the words left his mouth, she had already taken a bite of a strip.

"Vegetarian?"

"I found it better tasting than the real kind."

She shook the remaining piece of bacon at him accusingly, "You've been holding out on me, Michael."

"Oh really?" He retrieved two plates from the cabinent, handing one to Nikita.

"In all of the years I've known you, you've never cooked or mentioned cooking-ever."

"Well there's got to be more mystery to a relationship than just 'Are we gonna get killed or not?'"

She was shocked he was able to joke so openly, but found herself enjoying it. She hip checked him, laughing, and carried her plate to the coffee table in the living room and sat on the floor.

Michael followed in suit, sitting beside her. "How is it?", he asked after she put a forkfull in mouth. She chewed and appeared to be deciding on an answer before she turned to him with a bright expression on her face.

"Delicious- surprisingly."

Michael cocked his head to the side and raised his eyebrows, "Surprisingly? And what is that supposed to mean?"

"When I think Michael I don't exactly think Bobby Flay."

"Huh, because when I think Nikita, I don't think romantic movie fan either."

Nikita narrowed her eyes at him and swallowed her food, "I cried during ONE movie, five years ago Michael. How do you even remember that?"

"I remember alot of things", He answered, avoiding her glance.

"Like?" She was truely interested on what memories of the two of them he had held on to, and more specifically why.

"Doesn't matter." He grunted, grabbing the remote and Nikita had to hold back an eyeroll.

He was about to hand the remote to her, but retracted his arm when she moved to reach for it.

"One condition," He started, a smirk plastered on his lips that Nikita was wary of, "Nothing sappy."

Ignoring the comment, she vigourously snatched the device. "It was a good movie", She mumbled, bitter, and his smirk widened and he made a choice to continue ruffling her feathers.

"The title didn't make sense! 'A Walk to Remember', how did that even make sense?"

"It was based on a book. I just don't understand how you didn't cry at the end."

"Its fiction!"

"That doesn't matter!"

"Why would I get emotional over something that wasn't real? You only liked it because of the guy in it"

"Oh I seem to remember someone practically drooling over that one woman in the last Mission Impossible movie, so do you really want to go there?"

"Fine," Michael surrenedered and both smiled. Niether had been able to really let their guards down and be themselves with anyone in a long time. Eating breakfast, taking playful jabs at one another, it felt as if they were a normal pair of people.

They weren't oblivious to reality though. They understood sooner or later they would have to address what would happen next but for now, they were Michael and Nikita and that was all they needed to be. Themselves.

"This looks interesting, 'Red'", She suggested as she scrolled through the listing of movies on the on-demand screen.

He shrugged in a reply, "Well it doesn't look like a sappy movie, so alright." Nikita rolled her eyes and pressed play. She stood to clear the now empty plates from the coffee table, but while Michael moved up onto the couch he grasped her hand and similar to the early morning, pulled her down on the sofa.

"Everything can wait a little while longer," He huskily explained and she knew exactly what he meant. She sat back, resting the side of her head on his chest and stretching her uncovered legs on the couch. Michael pulled down a blanket and covered her body and then draped her arm around her. He kissed her head as they settled in and began watching the film.

The movie came to the scene where the Russian assassin revealed he was in love with an agent he wasn't supposed to fall for and displayed the scars from where she had shot him "protectively". Michael put his lips down to Nikita's ear and whispered, "Sounds familiar." She rotated her head and looked up at him about to make a comment, but was interrupted by his lips descending upon hers. When they seperated, Nikita turned back to the screen.

After a few minutes she finally stated, "But I have a better shot than that."

So I probably should've warned you guys about the slight spoiler for 'Red' (which by the way, INCREDIBLE movie! Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren, it just rocked!) but when I saw that movie and saw that scene all I could think was "MIKITA!" so I had to work it in. Also I just found it fun to include both a Shane West movie and a Maggie Q movie. hehe. Sorry they seem OOC but like I said before, I picture them more comfortable with eachother when they're alone LOL. 


	6. Facing Reality

(A/N: I know you are prob. sick of my author notes, but I just wanted to say thank you again to everyone for reading and reviewing! Both this story and my other one Team Nikita.)

The credits began rolling for 'Red'. The movie was finished. The room was silent. Tension flooded over the space, yet Michael and Nikita remained; Her head on his chest, his arm enveloping her smaller frame. His thumb stroked a random piece of skin on her hip while contemplating how long this could last; Nikita gave him an answser.

"Michael, we can't stay here all day," She reluctantly rose from her comfortable position, removing herself from him; niether were pleased by the seperation.

He released a disgruntled, "I know."

Awkward silence. Reality was starting to sink in and both were mentally reassessing their actions, as well as future implications from it. How could they proceed how they have been after the events of last night and this morning? Would she leave and the next time he'd catch a glimpse of her beauty be while holding a gun on her? If they were forced into sparring like they have been in the past, could they still conceal their attraction? If she was captured by Division again, could he stand by and pretend to be a good solider, or would he succumb to his feelings and be killed along side her?

They weren't unreasonable questions, however, Michael had come to conclusion about what he had to do already. He couldn't tell Nikita at the moment though, he just wanted to enjoy the time he had with her. The fierce silence was not enjoyable though, and she was the first to crack it.

"I'm shocked Percy hasn't called by now."

"I called him this morning, told him I wasn't able to come in today; I wanted to take a day off."

Nikita couldn't help but release a snort of laughter, "Since when does he take into consideration what you want?"

They anticipated this conversation; They instinctively knew it was what the other was pondering during the lull. It was unavoidable, but it didn't make it any less painful.

Michael was on his feet in rapid motion, "Don't Nikita," He warned, grabbing their breakfast plates from the coffee table and walking to the kitchen; Nikita followed. He was mute and ignored her eyes while she spoke again.

"Michael, why can't you see who Percy is?" No response. No eye contact. No hint of emotion radiating from Michael as he putzed around the kitchen, eventually turning his back to her. "You think you're doing ANYONE a favor by helping him? Not the innocent people he eliminates at the drop of a hat, or in his case, cash. Not the kids that are being groomed into Percy's robots. You're certainly not helping yourself..."

His anger finally boiled over, slamming his hands onto the counter, alarming Nikita momentarily. A dark look glazed his eyes by the time he spun around to meet her own, "I know EXCTLY who Percy is and what this agency is, Nikita. But not everyone is like you, we can't just so easily leave everything behind."

"Easy?" The word quivered as it escaped her mouth, "You think that's what it was for me, Michael?" Anger was rising in her voice, but the vulnerability was still present and he couldn't determine what an accurate response would be so he resolved that words were useless. She inhaled a shaky breath and supplied an answer to her own plea, "I had to escape from a lethal government black ops group, living everyday with the question of 'Is today the day they kill me?' I was leaving a lifestyle I was molded into and starting a totally new one, on my own!"

With every word, her fury grew. Easy. For HIM of all people to describe her deserting Division as that word, it was like a verbal slap in the face; What was worse is she was not prepared for it in contrast to how she would be a real slap. The pain would probably be less obvious if he had chosen the physical route too. Their eyes were still fixated on eachother's and she continued.

"Do you think it was EASY," The phrase seemed like venom now, never waivering in the damage it caused, "for me to accept the fact that I would never see you again, and if I did we'd be enemies? To realize I'd never spar with you again? Never sneak over here and watch movies during our off time? Never work with you on a mission again?" She held back the urge to say more things she missed from being without him, it was too difficult already. "Michael, that was one of the hardest things I've ever done but I had to! It was the right thing..."

"Don't," He growled and Nikita didn't comprehend the hostile response, "I didn't lose you because of some self righteous need to do the 'right' thing; I lost you to Daniel long before that!"

She released a deflated laugh, "Wow, Michael. You didn't 'lose' me and if you did, it's your own damn fault. In you're life Division ALWAYS came ahead of me and you."

"For always thinking you're so smart, you couldn't be more wrong," He circled around the counter, down the two steps, so they were now face to face.

Tensions were running high and both halves of the tortured twosome understood the results could be disasterous, but this was the most candid conversation they've had since she left three years ago. In the alley that first night, they tiptoed around one another. In Ubekistan there was no time alotted to rehash the pains of the past aside from the ones that came with the mission closest to Michael's heart. The roof where Nikita almost let the "L" word slip was close, but as every other opportunity, one of them sabatoged it; Niether could do that in this stand off.

"I would have done anything for you!" Michael exclaimed, an underlying tone of begging hidden deep within the words; Begging her to believe it was the truth.

Nikita, however, couldn't help but scoff, "Within Division limits right?"

"What the hell was I supposed to do? Whisk you away and start a life together? Don't you think I wanted that? A life of you and me and stupid movies? I did, more than anything, but I couldn't do that! I would have been putting both of our lives at risk!"

Shocked by his statements, Nikita needed a moment to absorb everything he had just said, but he interjected again, "I guess it doesn't matter though cause you moved on pretty damn fast didn't you?"

"Shut up, you know nothing about the situation."

Michael folded his arms over his muscular chest, "Fine, then by all means, fill me in." It was a challenge, for her and for himself. The less he heard about Daniel and Nikita, the better, but he had an overwhelming need to know what she indicated in her previous statement; He also loathed himself for desperately wanting to understand what Daniel gave her that he couldn't, aside from the obvious.

Fighting over Division was good, it was safe. Heated glares and words thrown in an inhanced volume were not out of the norm when it came to them. But what Nikita couldn't handle was this, bringing up the past and Daniel. Her deceased fiancee at the hands of Division was hardly a simple subject matter, but when MICHAEL was asking the questions, it was unbearable. She didn't want him to know the truth; Partly due to fear of disgracing Daniel, partly due to fear of looking weak. She shook her head and made a motion to move past him to get to her clothes, she had to get dressed and leave. If she didn't she'd no longer be able to hide her feelings, then it'd be harder when they were forced to say goodbye.

"Forget it Michael," Her voice was tired, but held onto it's anger, "I'm gonna leave before you call in the calvary."

However, Michael would not warrant her exit. Grabbing her wrist tightly, he reeled her back to him. Closer in proximity than niether were quite comfortable with, it was a discarded thought once their eyes met. His were begging for the truth; hers were pleading with him not to force her to tell him. The hostility was slowly disapating, leaving a whole different spectrum of emotions in its debris, ones that were much more dangerous.

"Nikita," He said in a soft, yet urgent whisper. She tried to avoid his blue eyes, actual tears filling in hers. He wouldn't allow this either though and used his free hand to reach out and cup her face, this thumb stroking her cheek, urging her on.

"I was never in love with Daniel," Michael couldn't find words, he wasn't sure any existed for this moment and it wouldn't mattered as she pulled away from the touch of his palm and continued, "I loved him, cared for him. He was.. an amazing guy. He was smart and funny and he cared about me, or at least the version of me he knew." Words were now coming into Michael's mind, but not particularly kind ones. He understood Daniel was a stand up gentleman, but his jealousy surpassed any logic and understanding he hand.

"But," Nikita started once more, inhaling a shaky breath, "I was IN love with the life that was promised with him. One of normalcy that I fooled myself into thinking I could have; One that I've wanted my entire life. It was the dream I loved, but I wasn't in love with Daniel, not at all," Truthfully, she was ashamed that she admitted this, but even more than that, ashamed that it was true. She wanted so desperately to belong to something, someone, that she tried to make herself believe that she had fallen in love with someone who could provide it.

"Why not?" He had finally gathered the courage to speak, but the question was far from simple, especially for Nikita.

"You know why," She painfully said in a voice that was barely audible.

"Say it," He pleaded, his heart was aching; he didn't want to hurt either of them, but he had to hear it escape her perfectly sculpted lips.

"You," She wriggled her wrist out of his grasp and slid it down, intertwining it with his, "Because I've always been in love with you."

Love. You. The only two words that could register in Michael's brain were those. He never knew so few words could have such an effect on him.

"You are stubborn, and damaged, and dangerous for all the reasons we were aware of 6 years ago, that still exist. You're also way too easy to beat in a fight," For the first time in what seems like centuries (in actuality, a very miniscule amount of hours), a smirk tugged at her lips. He raised a questioning eyebrow to the last statement but continued, "But you are caring and loving and when I came to Division, you were the only person I could trust."

"Well you never made it easy, always challenging me," A smirk crossed his face, "You still don't, but the moment I met you, I knew it'd be trouble, but for various other reasons. I tried so damn hard not to get attached to you, Nikita. But you... for the first time since..." He didn't need to say her name, she knew and she understood, it was one of the many reasons he felt the way he did about her, "I got more than attached, I fell in love with you."

Nikita's breath hitcched in her throat, it wasn't unexpected, but it was still shocking. Having a scarce air supply in the moment, she inadvertantly gave him permission to continue.

"And like before, after you left, I tried so hard to forget you or to forget my feelings for you.."

"That worked out well?" The shared a playful smile, especially when she fiddled with a button on his shirt she was still wearing.

"Not so much, if anything when you came back and you were stronger and more confidant than ever, I loved you more and I didn't think that was possible," He tugged at her hand and she crept even closer to him, their faces mere inches from eachother, "I'm still in love with you, Nikita. I never stopped."

"I love you too Mi..." But his name was irrelevent to the pair as soon as his lips pressed against hers.

It was a different kiss than in the previous 24 hours. It still had the fire, the chemistry, the heat, but it was gentle and savoring. She snaked her arms up his chest, locking them around his neck and his wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer.

Finally feeling the need for oxygen, they retracted, but remained close, resting their foreheads against eachother's.

"Took us long enough," Nikita joked softly.

"We've never been easy," He retorted and she chuckled, the sound lifting his heart, but running parallel with his pain.

Silence occured for a moment before Nikita spoke, "Back at square one; What happens now?"

"Nikita," He breathed out, kissing her quickly again, but letting his lips linger longer than expected on hers, "I'm not leaving Division."

(I KNOW! I'm sorry! LOL. This was a hard chapter write, especially the end but I promise this is not a doom and gloom Mikita fic, you've obviously read the other chapters so you all know that! Please review and tell me what you think! :D)  



	7. Hurtful Fights and Deadly Plans

Nikita couldn't free herself from Michael's embrace fast enough; Trying to mask the shock on her face that matched the betrayl in her heart. Without a word, she spun on her heel charging straight for the bedroom.

"Nikita!" Michael called out, following her. He could hear her mumbling to herself, vague phrases that sounded like "Stupid... Divison.. Jackass". He reached out to grab her arm just as she entered the bedroom, but instead she put to use her opposite limb and elbowed him in the stomach. Doubled over slightly, she turned and hit the back of his head and he fell to the floor. Groaning in frustration, he grabbed her ankle and gave a harsh jerk and she came tumbling onto the hardwood as well. He seized her with expert speed, attempting to keep her immoblie by using his body to cover hers.

Nikita kicked and pushed, but he was strong. She cursed under her breath and finally stopped for a moment.

"You're going to hurt yourself," Michael panted, still catching his breath from the impromptu scuffle.

"I'm not the one going back to Division," She spat in return, choosing to focus on her anger and not fact that his body was pressed against hers once again.

"Nikita..." He lowered his voice, and inched his face down closer to hers, "Please don't fight me."

His plead was followed by a gentle kiss on her lips. She wanted so badly to kiss him back, savor his taste, and spend the rest of the evening like they had during their perfect morning, but things were different now.

She manuevered her hand out from under him and grabbed his wrist twisting it hard and flipping him off of her. She removed his shirt that she wore and thrust it towards him. He didn't bother to stop her; At this point it would be pointless. When she was finished she glanced at him, their eyes locking. It was one of their patented stares where they had a discussion without speaking. Hurt, anger, regret, sadness, it was all there; They both would have done anything to change their circumstances.

Nikita broke the contact first, motioning to leave, but came to a halt in the doorway and turned to face him again.

"I'm fighting Division, Michael," She swallowed hard, "You're the one choosing to fight me."

When she left the bedroom, it didn't take long for Michael to hear the door slam. Just as easily as she infiltrated his heart, she had left.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Birkoff greeted as Michael strode into the Division control center.

"Hello to you too," Michael responded bitterly, busying himself by going through a random file.

Birkoff stared at one of his boss's in obvious confusion, "Percy said you were taking a personal day, which is bizarre in itself, but why are you here?"

"Can you just shut up and get back to work? I need you to send all of the upcoming ops and their specifications to my phone,"

"Fine, be broody, but the cost of botox these days is a bitch; Don't expect to get ladies with those frown lines" The tech nerd threw up his hands in surrenderence and went back to furiously typing, supplying Michael's demands.

Michael rolled his eyes, and studied the file he was aimlessly shuffling though a bit more closely. His face contorted to one of befuddlement, something was not right.

"Birkoff, what the hell is this?" Holding up the file for his collegue to view.

"I know, right? Its disturbing Percy still bothers using papers," But when he saw Michael's expression he understood that was not what he had meant, "Oh, he's making a new move to get to Nikita."

"This is a suicide mission! It'll get at least 6 recruits killed, how is this going to lead him to Nikita?"

"Hey, don't ask me! I'm not in the middle of you and the big guy's threesome with Niki." Another glare from his superior followed his less than diplomatic answer.

"Well where is Percy now?" Michael growled, clinching the file his hand that was morphing into a fist.

"Office, but..." It was too late, he was already whizzing past Birkoff and exiting the control center.

Michael reached Percy's office, but stood outside of the room for a few minutes, trying to lower his blood pressure. If he snapped on Percy, not only would he be endangering himself, but Nikita- more than she already was. If we was going to be at Division, he had to remain poised in situations like these; Emotions were not allowed to be shown.

He knocked loud enough for the head honcho to hear and entered at the familar voice of approval.

"Michael? I didn't expect to see you in here today," Percy said, only glancing up for a minute from his computer, "However, I'm pleased you decided to make an appearance."

"Thank you sir, for allowing me to take the day off," He replied obediantly, trying to not grit it through his teeth.

The head of Division looked up, his signature snake-like smile creeping across his lips, "You've been here for many years, have been loyal and dedicated to the agency, it was only fitting you be granted a day of... relaxtion."

Michael cocked his head slightly and stared at Percy, the tone in his voice was eery- almost as if he knew how Michael had spent his day.

"Right, well I saw the file you marked for me, any particular reason it didn't get cleared by me before being marked active?"

Percy's evil grin faded, and he stood, adjusting his expensive suit, "Plans have to be made, Michael."

"Yes, but if this is a plan to get to Nikita, I should have been informed well before now, afterall you did assign me to her..."

"Killing? Exactly, and it hasn't been accomplished so I'm taking matters into my own hands."

"How does this even include Nikita? All it does is get 6 recruits killed," Michael inquired, but his boss was swift to answer, making his way towards him.

"And Nikita, that is our goal, Michael; Killing Nikita is now Division's number 1 priority, I'm assuming this will not be an issue.." His voice had another silk, masterful mask about it; He was withholding information.

"No.. no, sir," The younger of the men nodded, attempting to slow his heart rate down since Percy was a few feet in front of him and preceptive, "I'm just thinking of our people."

"I've already gone over the files with Amanda, who reported that many of them would have been cancelled otherwise, might as well make their deaths useful," The words were chilling and Michael found silence to be his friend in this situation, "Besides, if it is a success as I am predicting it will be, the rest of our people will be much safer without Nikita running around."

Quickly composing a cold stare in his eyes to seem disattached, Michael responded with another dutiful nod. "Yes, sir. I think I'm going to go home and review the details, I'll call you with any minor improvements I can impliment."

"Great," Percy said, barely paying attention to his second in command's presence, resuming his seat at his desk; Michael left not even a minute later.

Once he was outside of the office, Michael cracked his head side to side, trying to loosen the muscles that were now tense. He promised Nikita and more importantly himself he would never let anything happen to her, it was why he was standing where he was, but the stakes were now heightened. This mission Percy had cooked up was not Nikita-proof, but it was too good for Michael's comfort; It COULD work.

Suddenly, his cellphone vibrated in his pants pocket and Michael pulled it out to see Birkoff had transferred every upcoming op to him as directed.

"Perfect," He smirked proudly, and left Division.

-  
(A/N: OK Relatively short update, but an important one. LOL. Yes, you will learn what the details of the mission is, I promise. Please keep reading and reviewing, it seriously makes my LIFE. haha!)  



	8. I Would Never Go Back

(A/N: OK I am SO sorry it has taken me seemingly forever to update my fics, especially this one, but I promise to get them all updated this week at some time or another. Thank you to all who read and/or review. It totally makes my day and I'm glad you guys like the stories!)

It didn't take long for Michael to locate Nikita's lair, his idea of lojacking her shoe when he had woken up before her in the morning had really paid off. He was surprised by the lack of secruity and made a mental note to mention that to her later, but entering was easy. He was less than surprised, however, to see her in a diffence stance, her gun already poised, when he walked into the main room.

"Michael?" She exclaimed in shock after identifying her intruder, "How the hell... Did you place a tracker on me? Are you really THAT desperate for Percy's approval because you could've just killed me last ni..."

"Would you shut up for 2 seconds?" His voice was even; There was no sign of anger, smugness, nothing noting what he was feeling and it further confused the rogue agent. After what had happened a mere few hours ago, she could not allow his smokey, sexy voice or charming smile or gorgeous eyes to distract her; Her guard could not come down again.

He cautiously took a few steps forward, but she wouldn't relinquish her grip on the pistol. He didn't know why he deluded himself into thinking she wouldn't, after what he led her to believe a short while prior to this impromptu visit, how could he? He remained cool, one thing he did know for a fact is she would never pull the trigger- even if she was pissed off. In an odd way, it gave him more leverage in this situation, which is what he needed to make her listen.

"I am here because of Percy," Nikita rolled her eyes at the statement, the lingering feelings of anger and betrayl continuing to fester within her. Michael sensed this and quickly finished his intended thought, "I'm here to help you destroy him."

"What?" Nikita could barely mutter the one word question, bewilderment clouding everything in her mind. Michael nodded absently, staring at the gun that was still trained on him.

"You gonna lower that or should I worry about my other shouldar?" A smirk danced across his lips while she wiggled the shouldar Nikita had previously injured. But the smirk was what she was focused on; She hated that smirk. It was sexy and it was taunting, it was everything she was trying to clear her mind of after storming out of his apartment.

Her own lips curved upward, matching the one on his, "Still deciding."

Michael raised a brow, "We can't do this if you have that raised at me the whole time."

"I don't know, my abilities to multitask are wonderful."

"Nikita," He tipped his head, silently imploring her to see reason.

She sighed, "Michael if this is a trick..." But she saw it in his eyes, a sincerity that contrasted his teasing grin. She rarely saw that gleam of candor with him, only with her. During her time in Division, every time she saw him with Percy or Amanda, his eyes were glazed over- cold as ice like a good soldier's should be. She saw that same stare when he fought or was on a mission. She was lucky enough to get to see beyond the facade though, and it had never been lie (or at leas thats what she hoped)

Releasing another defeated sigh, she slowly lowered the gun but set it close by on her desk, "Fine, explain." Her hands slid up and rested upon her hips.

Michael was pleased and walked closer to her, retrieving his cellular device from his pants pocket, "Percy has a new..."

"No, go back to the 'I'm going to help you destroy the mother of all jackasses' comment."

"I don't think I phrased it like that."

"Same difference."

Michael could scarcely contain a grin of amusement and in return Nikita was proud that she bemused Percy's 2nd in command with her quip. However the light moment they shared, dissolved quicky and she was brought back to the issue at hand.

"Seriously though Michael, what does this mean? Why are you here? Because approximately two hours ago you said-"

Michael had shoved his cell phone back into the pocket it had nested in before as she spoke. He closed the gap between them, seizing her face in his hands, bringing her sentence to an abrupt halt, "I would NEVER go back to Division after what happened between us."

Nikita's expression contorted to one of confusion; She began to wonder if this was an illusion, if Michael was, in reality, back at Division being a good little boy and following Percy's orders. None of this made any sense if it wasn't some sort of dream sequence; How could they go from fighting, to saying 'I love you', to him declaring his allegiance to the god forskaen agency that had seperate them for too long, to now holding her in his strong hands? A mixture of stun and the overwhelming affect of his eyes boring into hers, peaked her curiousity and in turn, she remained silent.

"I did have to go back to Division, but to get the schematics for the upcoming ops."

"Michael why couldn't you tell me? Why make me think..." Her voice trailed off as she came to a realization, a horrid one. She flung his hands from her face and shoved him- hard. Again, he wasn't surprised, he was shocked she hadn't done anything more drastic (after all, the gun was still in immediate reach), "You thought that by allowing me to believe you had decided to stay in Division, I'd be so pissed I wouldn't care if you ended up on the wrong side of Percy's gun?"

"Nikita.." Michael groaned, she knew him too well. Last night, he promised he'd never tolerate Division laying a hand on her and that was the truth. When he awoke, he began to process things and figured going back to Division would be best. He could act as her new mole, they could be partners and bring down Percy, but most importantly, they'd be together. However, the argument they had entered into had changed things; Nikita confessing her love for him, changed things. And although he told Nikita that the apartment was Division free, he could never be 100% confident. So they loved eachother and had a possible threat hanging over them- Michael mentally prepared two plans- run off together or he'd sacrafice himself (and possibly Nikita's feelings for him) and if Percy DID know, he'd handle that- he just didn't want to hurt her.

It was a desperate move, certainly one he was glad didn't have the consequences he anticipated in his worst case scenarios- except for now. The hurt reflecting in Nikita's eyes was worse than their confrontation earlier, and the outrage in her voice was parallel, "Do you think I care about you that little that if somehow Percy found out about last night and I never saw you again, I'd be fine with that? Because you went to Division?"

He glanced down momentarily, ashamed that she assumed he was undermining her feelings for him, her voice willed him to raise his eyes again.

"You've always gone back to Division, but Michael, no matter what, if something happened to you..." She swallowed hard, imagining any potential harm that Michael could be associated with was agonizing; It was a reminder of memories, such as in Uzbekistan when he said his goodbyes and was embarking on a suicide mission. But vocalizing it was like acid slithering down her throat.

Luckily, there was hardly any time to ponder it as she was interrupted by her former tainer gliding across the distance that seperate them and descending his lips upon hers. Once she reacted and kissed him back, he pulled her closer- a feat that was scarcely possible. After a few minutes of indulging in the luscious lip lock, Michael pulled back, resting his forehead against hers.

"I'm sorry," He murmured and gave a slight nod, "I was trying to be cautious- Nikita, this is dangerous, I just don't want you to get hurt, in any way, because of me."

"You never listen do you?" She whispered in a teasing tone, "I told you before, I can handle a lot more pain than you think."

He kissed her again, briefly, but not rushed.

"Yeah but you shouldn't have to. Speaking of which," Now he completely unraveled from her embrace, once more retrieving his phone and handing it to her.

"Birkoff send you the plans? No questions?"

Michael smirked, walking around her as she began searching through the cellular. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, reading over her shouldar, "Why would he? I'm a good soldier remember?"

She used her elbow to softly jab him in the gut, but laughed simultaneously. Then he started debriefing her on what he knew so far, however, the first word he uttered instantly froze her.

"Alex, the agent that captured you," Nikita worked to steady her heartbeat, hearing Alex's named was never easy, it made her nervous. She logically knew she had to tell Michael about their partnership soon, but her and Alex needed to discuss it first so she acted aloof, continuously scrolling through the plans as he spoke, "has most of the higher level field ops, but I'm sure you knew that."

Thump. Thump. That was all she the only audio her ears detected; the sound of her heart nervously banging against her chest.

Michael placed a kiss on her neck and rounded around to face her, an amused expression on his cocky face.

"What are you talking about?" Ignoring him seemed like the best bet, albeit the least effective.

"Nikita I know she's your mole, you don't need to hide it anymore." She glanced up and met his eyes, ofcourse he was pleased with himself for discovering Nikita's best kept secret, but the sincereness she saw earlier reappeared. She loved him, he WAS the only one she's ever trusted, silently recalling her words from earlier, she needed to permit her guard to come down.

Finally, she released a sigh, "How did you find out?"

"Various signs, she acted too much like you NOT to be trained by you," He smirked at her and she returned the grin with pride. Alex was an excellent student and she wasn't embarassed to take the credit.

"Nikita 2.0?"

"There could never be another you," Michael truthfully replied, his smokey voice dripping with adoration.

"Flattery, hmm... Hoping for a repeat of last night?"

"Later," Nikita raised an eyebrow in surprise, "There's something serious we need to talk about- Percy has a new plan to get to you."

"When doesn't he?" She scoffed in reply, tossing his phone back which we caught effortlessly, while staring her in the eye. A graver expression clouded his eyes and she rolled hers, "Fine, whats the big bad wolf's plan now? Send you after me again, because I like this punishment."

She stalked closer to him, but her seductive ploys didn't work with Michael this time.

"Nikita you may not like Percy," He sensed her itch to interject so quickly corrected himself, "Loathe him, hate him, whatever. But he is very powerful and this plan Nikita... Its not something you can take lightly."

"I never do Michael. This isn't some game to me, this is my life, but I'm not going to cower in some corner. I can handle..."

"Nikita, its going to get six recruits killed."

This was a shock. Nikita was aghast and for once had a diffcult time of grasping the correct words, "A suicide mission? Why would he do something that risky?"

"Apparently they all would've been canceled anyway," Michael explained, conviently leaving out the part about their passings being 'useful', why add fuel to Nikita's fire? "And he's certain that this time..."

"I have no escape," Michael hated those words coming from her mouth, just as he suspected how she felt if anything were to happen to him- he felt it 10 times more for the dark haired beauty in front of him, but his assessment of his protectiveness would be reserved for another time as her voice snapped him back to reality, "Whats the plan?"

"See for yourself," He pulled the file from the inside of his jacket and handed it to her watching as her analytical expression morhped to one of disgust and then anger.

"Why does this involve Alex?" 


	9. Sacrafices

"I told you that there would be recruits sacraficed.." Michael began tentatively, afraid of the deathly glaze in Nikita's eyes as he saw her grip his phone with rage yet to be expressed.

"But Alex isn't a recruit, Michael! She's a field agent, a highly respected one! Why the hell is she on this mission?" Her voice was trembling slightly, anger and fear weighing down on her in an overhwleming combination. Visions of Alex lying lifeless on the ground clouded her mind and she suddenly felt ill.

Michael took a step closer to his lady love, keeping his eyes locked on hers, "Nikita, Alex is not going to be one of the casualities of the mission- she is going to head it."

Nikita's brow furrowed and she released a hardened chuckle, "No, no. She can't head a mission like this, she-"

"Was trained exceptionally well, and she has a-"

"Don't!" Nikita growled, "She does NOT have a killer extinct; She's NOT like Percy, she has a soul!"

Michael sighed, "Fine, but you're ignoring the finer picture for Percy to choose Alex for this: She 'captured' you before."

"And I escaped-"

"Amanda. You escaped Amanda, not Alex," He pointed out and she rolled her eyes exaggerantly as he continued, "As far as Percy's concerned, that makes her perfect."

"To HEAD a mission? I thought you were in charge of my confirmation," Michael winced, he avoided all thoughts of her potentially being dead so when it was proposed, it was a difficult idea to focus upon, "Why did Percy pass you over for a newly graduated agent?"

"I already told you, he thinks Alex would be better suited."

"Michael, what aren't you telling me?" Did he honestly think she was oblivious? She detected the tone in his voice, the semi-shouldar shrug he did when he was uncomfortable. She crept across the distance between them so they were close enough to touch, but both refrained.

"I haven't been able to complete the assignment, thats all," He explained, sincerity in his eyes, but a nervous beating in his heart. Nikita cocked her head to the side, and discarded the phone to a random pice of furniture and taking his face in her free hands. She was urging him to say his other hypothesis and gazing into her dark eyes, he couldn't refuse, "I also suspect he thinks I'm incapable of the task."

Nikita couldn't resist a smirk for the first time in this conversation, "Imagine that." He gave her one of his patented frustrated expressions, but it simply encouraged the taunting grin.

"Nikita.." He groaned in disapproval and she intruded upon his imposing lecture, by placing a soft kiss on his lips.

"Michael," She whispered, removing her lips from his, "I have to fight for you and Alex, you know that right?"

He was silent, pondering those words. His eyes squinted, staring at her with confusion. She didn't break eye contact with him, but reached into his pocket, removing a taser. It was then he realized what she had meant as she held it out to him expectantly.

"No, absolutely NOT!" He hissed, ripping the taser from her hand and throwing it across the room, pulling away from her. However, in contrast to his behavior, Nikita was perfectly calm.

"If you take me to Division, this suicide mission will be deactivated, and you will prove your standing to Percy."

"I'm not loyal to Percy!"

"I know that! But if Percy knows that, he'll cancel you on the spot Michael!"

"I don't give a damn!"

"I do!"

"So you sacrafice yourself? Nikita, you know better than ANYONE, that I can't lose another person I love," He paused for a moment to catch his breath before grasping her face in his hands like she had done prior, "Especially you."

He emphasized the last word and Nikita felt tears sting her eyes, but blinked to block them revealing themselves, "Well I can't lose you or Alex. Michael, she can't handle this, and she certainly can't handle it by herself."

"We'll help her, we have all the information."

"And then Percy will know you are both double agents; Alex has a kill chip in her head!"

"This isn't scheduled to happen for two weeks, we'll get Alex to a neurosurgeon and have it removed. I have enough connections to make it happen discreetly," Nikita listened intently, but he could see the resistance in her posture. She rested her hands on her hips, her eyes blinking more than usual. He tipped his head to the side, "What?"

"That's a great plan, its one I've been thinking about and mapping out for awhile," Her statement was cool, but Michael anticipated it was not her only thought on the subject; He was correct, "But what happens after that? To Alex? To you? The removal of the kill chip doesn't prevent Percy from getting the job done."

"We'll get Alex out of there as soon as this mission is done. She can stay here with you, or we'll get her an ID package and send her someplace she'll be safe."

"Awesome," Nikita challenged dryly, her eyes watering despite her desire to hinder that exact response, "And you'll just what? Go back to Division? Be the hero and get a clip emptied into your body?"

"Better me than you," It was a simple reply, he stiffened his body and it reminded her of how he acted when they were inside Division- cool, reserved, dutiful.

She shook her head and turned away from him, tears now beginning to track down her cheeks. She wiped them away furiously, but Michael could still see what was happening before him. He hated it when she cried, he's only seen it a handful of times in the past and yet, every time made him ache inside.

"Nikita," He whispered, but it seemed to echo throughout the large open space.

She refused to face him, it felt physically impossible to even move. "You're such a hypocrite," She spat with resentment, "You say you couldn't handle it if I sacraficed myself, yet its so fine if you can do the same? Wow, thats twice in one day, Michael!"

"You're life-"

"I swear," She spun on her heel, facing him in rage, "If you dare say MY life is more valuable than yours, I will do Percy's job for him and kill you myself! Michael, I wouldn't even be here if it weren't for you!"

Michael took a few steps closer to her, when she didn't retreat, he grasped her hand. Bringing it to his lips, he placed a kiss on the top of her smooth skin, "Yes you would. You are more than capable of taking care of yourself, no matter what I usually say. Isn't that right, big girl?" Nikita involuntarily huffed out a laugh, and using his free hand, Michael wiped away the stray tears on her face, "Its one of the reasons I love you."

"Michael if this is a goodbye-" But she was cut off by his lips on hers. It was unexpected, but smoldering. It was more passionate than any of their amazing kisses beforehand, it crackled with heat. Nikita wanted desperately to just rake her fingers through his hair, to have him lift her up, and to make love to him until they were devoid of strength, but she couldn't. Reluctantly, breaking away, she leaned against him, her knees still shaky from liplock.

"This isn't a goodbye," He said into her hair, before her head snapped up to look at him, "I will ALWAYS put you before me, but thats not going to happen, not yet."

Nikita stared at him suspiciously, "I know it won't, but a few minutes ago you sounded like you didn't."

A smirk graced his face and she was thrilled by the sightt, "That kiss proved we BOTH have too much to live for, Percy will never get the satisfaction of ruining that."

"Thats more like it," She needled, grabbing the front of his shirt and kissing him once more. This time niether pulled away, regardless of Michael's phone flashing with Percy's number.

-  
(A/N: Awww yeah I know it sucks. Not much of a cliffhanger, which I like to do ;) But it'll get better! I really just wanted to focus this chapter on Mikita and them dealing with what could be the fallout of the secret "get Nikita" op. lol. I think there will be a MAX of 5 or less more chapters for this fic and then it'll be over. Read & review, tell me your thoughts) 


	10. And So It Begins

"Let me this straight: You two are finally... together? And Percy is ordering me, your mole, to head a mission that ends up with 6 innocent recruits dead?"

"And ideally, me too," Nikita shrugged off her protege's question. Michael and her had informed Alex just minutes beforeof their union, as well as the controversial operation. It was approximately two weeks before the mission was scheduled to happen, and Percy would be calling for a briefing tomorrow.

"But that isn't going to happen," Michael stressed, standing from the stool he was sitting upon and crossing his arms in a stern stance. Nikita stood beside him, both peering down at Alex who sat uneasily on the cot. She fidgeted with her hands, not meeting either of her instructer's eyes.

"Alex," Nikita commanded and the 19 year old glanced up, "We're going to get you out."

"But," She pointed to the back of her neck where the kill chip device was located beneath her skin.

Michael answered promptly, "I have a contact who will remove it in the quickest and safest fashion possible."

"We'll be sending you to him after the briefing," Nikita finished the explanation, "Your ID packet is ready to go, so after the op, we'll send you on the first plane anywhere you want to go."

However, what should be a gleeful expression, Alex's face was covered in confusion and sadness. Michael and Nikita glanced at one another, than back to the the youthful agent with concern in their eyes.

"Everything alright?" He asked first, albeit carefully; He didn't want to over step his bounds with her. Ever since she was "recurited" into Division, he couldn't deny seeing Haley in her; His first born would be close in age to her, if she had lived. But, he was in a position to do what he couldn't do for his little girl: protect Alex. The fact that Nikita loved her as family re-enforced that need to guard. He also understood that this was very new to Nikita's partner, and he didn't need to scare her with parental tactics. If anyone was the true parental figure in her life, it was Nikita- who did it beautifully.

Michael watched as Nikita sat beside Alex, putting an arm around her co-conspirator's shouldars, as if she'd been taking care of her Alex's whole life.

"I just... I want to be apart of this fight, how can I do that from island off the coast of no where?" The Russian native questioned with a pout, "These people, they..." But she suddenly remembered Michael's prescence in the room and stopped herself.

"You don't have to tell me if you're not comfortable, Alex," Michael assured and Nikita couldn't resist smiling at his comforting words to her friend. His sweetness and protective instinct were two things she loved most about him. She always knew he had cared for the kids Division reeled in, even if he denied it. Alex was a different situation though, Nikita understood he would do anything she asked of him for Alex, but it wasn't hard to tell when he looked at Alex he imagined an older version of Haley- his little princess he lost too soon; It killed her that he'd always live with that pain.

Alex looked at Michael, than Nikita, before returning her stare to the former Division 2nd in command, "If Nikita trusts you," She inhaled and exhaled, "than I do too."

Michael let a small hint of a grin pass his lips, grabbing a chair and pulling it closer to the cot as Alex began to speak, "My name is Alexandra Udinov." Both women saw the recognition hit Michael's face and Nikita nodded solemnly.

"She's Nikolai's daughter, Michael."

"But you-"

"I got her out," Nikita finished to her astonished beau, "She was twelve years old, I couldn't let her burn in that house."

Alex fought back tears, "I was kidnapped and made Russian sex slave, which you know."

Michael shrugged, he had assumptions, mainly from Amanda's assessments, but he normally didn't give recruit's pasts a second thought (except when Nikita was one, but that was for obvious circumstances).

"Nikita found me, got me out. But it didn't matter because by than I was a total junkie and took a hit wherever I could get it. Once again, she found me, got me clean..." She trailed off, a wistful smile on her face as she recalled her savior's efforts.

"You didn't make it easy," Nikita remarked, nudging her partner's shouldar with her own, "But it was worth it."

"Thanks," She said to her mentor, no matter how understated that was and turned back to Michael, "She told me about my parents, why they were murdered."

"And you joined her in her fight," He concluded with a nod.

"It was actually her idea to infiltrate," She noted, nodding towards Alex, and he seemed surprised, but none the less impressed.

Alex rotated her head to look at her favorite instructor, "Its only because I had an awesome teacher that I was able to pull it off."

"Well," Nikita smiled at her protege, before standing to her feet and manuevering to the chair Michael was sitting on, and took a seat on his lap, "Thats because I had a pretty OK teacher myself."

Alex couldn't disguise a smile as she watched Nikita pull her stare from herself to Michael, he did the same.

"Really? Just OK?" He smirked, raising an eyebrow, his left arm encircling around her tiny waist while the other rested on her leg.

She seemed to be pondering her next answer, and Michael rolled his eyes, "Well, considering I still kicked your ass on a regular basis when I was a recruit, I'd say natural skill trumps all our lessons." She stifled a giggle at his expression of irritation, mainly because he couldn't dispute that notion. She leaned down and purred into his ear, "But you have other talents that are far better."

"Oh ew!" Alex exclaimed in horror, covering her ears, "First it was cute, now its just gross!" She cursed her impecable senses, as did Michael and Nikita who assumed she couldn't hear them, "It was one thing to figure out it was his jacket here, just ick! Get a room!"

"We would, but you're sitting on our bed," Nikita smirked, then chuckling as her friend's eyes widened and she leapt from her sitting position.

"Oh jeez, seriously?" The light haired beauty yelped, "And don't you guys think you deserve a real bed? You've waited long enough!"

"That's what his apartment's for."

Michael simply shut his eyes and shook his head at the womens' exchange.

"He has an apartment? I just assumed he lived at Division."

"Nah, I assumed that too before he took me there when I was an agent."

"I would say 'bow chicka wow wow' but the thought of you two doing... that is starting to become more and more like my parents doing it."

Despite the amusement he felt with Alex illustarting him and Nikita as parents, he had to put an end to the embarrassing conversation, "Ladies can we please return the focus to the operation?" Nikita mouthed to Alex, "Easily embarrassed," and her friend snorted. Michael gave his girlfriend a disapproving glance, but she distracted him by planting a quick kiss on his lips before removing herself from him.

"Alright so we're estimating a maximum time of a week for Alex's full recovery?" She asked, making her to her computer.

"Aproximately, however, I highly doubt it'll take that long," Michael answered, joing her by the system, leaning his back against the desk., "Estaban is a remarkable surgeon in this field."

"And Percy doesn't know him?" Alex chimed in, her voice a bit shaky as she asked the question.

"No, Estaban is one of my colleagues from a few years back; no ties to Percy whatsoever."

Nikita tapped and manuevered her way through the cyber images on her screen, "Meanwhile, Michael and I will strategize how to deal with the actual op and we'll brief you when you come back."

"But if I'm gone for a long period of time, especially during training-"

"I have it covered, don't worry," Michael advised, suddenly feeling Nikita's eyes on him. He turned his head and matched her gaze; She was worried, he had yet to inform her of how exactly he was going to manage to get Alex a vacation, "It won't be impossible, you've been a 'loyal agent," He managed a smirk at the ironic sentence as he looked back at Alex, "It's not impossible to fathom you'd need some relaxtion before such a heavy, important operaton."

Nikita, however, was still wary at her man's words. She knew that it would not be as simplistic as he was painting it to be, but she wouldn't say that in front of Alex- she was disturbed enough by the mere scamatic of the mission.

"So the briefing is tomorrow? Does that mean we'll find out which recruits will... are.." Alex couldn't bring herself to say anything involving the deaths of the innocent kids, some who she had even interracted with; the whole idea churned her stomach.

"We should have a pretty good outline from Amanda, however, myself and Percy grant final approval."

"Remember you'll have to put on one helluva performance tomorrow," Nikita advised, swirling around on her seat to face her trainee.

Alex snorted, "Well I've had some pretty lousy liars as an influence." She sent pointed glances to both componenets of the couple, "You two were SO unconvincing this whole time! 'Has he mentioned me?'" She interpretted the dark haired feeme fatale's comment, then transforming her voice to a deep, scratchy one, imitating Michael, "'Nikita's like a cancer' Yeah, right!"

"I'm like what?" Nikita's head whipped around to glare at her former trainer, "You compared me to a terminal illness?"

Michael opened his mouth to retort with an explanation, but simply manefested a perfect arched brow, "You wanted to know if I was talking about you?"

"Well thats enough of this conversation," Nikita, now fully flushed, reversed in her seat to stare at the computer again; She didn't handle embarrassment well and Michael and Alex share an amused look behind her back, "We need to start mapping out this location, see if we have any advantages, especially before-"

But her sentence was suddenly intersected by Michael's phone vibrating rapidly and Alex's blaring a Panic! At The Disco song.

"- you're both summoned to the hell hole," Nikita sighed soberly, finishing her interrupted thought, and both of her allies nodded glumly. Nikita bobbed her head slowly, opting to fixate her stare on a random floor tile, before her dark eyes to meet her partners, "And so it begins."  



	11. Preparing for the Storm and Beyond

(Dedicated to the one and only Liis, who has been a fan of this fic for some unknown reason since like day one and always encourages me to update. She's amazing! Go follow her on twitter yo! VeggieShake)

The briefing had gone as expected- easily. Percy informed Alex of her prestigious roll in "Operation Confirmation" and was pleased when she loyally stepped up to the task, even throwing in a "It'll be a pleasure to bring that bitch down- permanently." The name of the op was fitting seeing as it was Percy's way of announcing if Nikita was not put down for good, the mission was fruitless.

Amanda gave her recommendations for the six recruits Alex would be supervising, Percy agreed, and Michael made no objections. Once the information was discussed fully, Michael turned to Percy, requesting Alex to have a small leave of absence for mental preparation for the operation. The head honcho had no grievance with the thought, and, to Michael's surprise, Amanda even concurred it was essential that an agent's mind be devoid of hesitations or stress. Alex graciously thanked them all and promised to report in a week for prep sessions, drills, and practices for the actual event.

Now Nikita and Michael were standing with Alex at the back door of Michael's contact's office. It was a relatively small infirmary, on the outerbanks of the city. Estaban, the surgeon, had been informed of the preliminary specifics in advance and had no issue in assisting his old friend. Alex was shaky, that was clear; Nikita was also a bit rattled by nerves as she tried her best to reassure her protege.

"It'll be fine," She spoke smoothly, brushing Alex's locks behind her shouldars, "You don't have to worry about a thing. And as soon as its over, I'll come in to see you."

"Estaban said it wouldn't take very long, the removal will be just as simple as the placement," Michael chimed in, his hand sliding to Nikita's lower back for support.

Alex swallowed hard, adding a quick nod of agreement, "I'll be fine," She repeated with less certainity in her tone.

Nikita pulled her in, hugging her her tightly, "Its a just a mundane procedure, I promise, everything will be OK. I'll be here the whole time."

The encouraging whispers were helpful and as she pulled back, the Russian immigrant had a weak smile tugging at her lips. "You guys don't have to stay, with Division and the mission-"

"You couldn't get rid of us if you tried," Michael interrupted her thoughts, earning him a proud smile from his girlfriend, who agreed with a nod.

"You'll also only be in here for maybe a day or two after the procedure so no worries about being off of Division's grid," Nikita reminded. Even with Michael's successful plan of having Alex recieve a small leave of absence, she knew the young agent was still apprehensive about the idea. Speaking of her pupil, she stared blankly into the distance, but gave a small nod to signal she comprhended the words that were said to her. Nikita locked eyes with Michael, who rubbed the small of her back where his hand was placed. He coughed, breaking the tense moment, and snapping Alex from her trance.

"We should go inside," He suggested and opened the door, Alex entering. He held the door for the other woman, but Nikita made no attempt to move.

"You take her in, I'm gonna stay out here for a few minutes," She saw his concerned expression and she forced a smile, "Its fine, go ahead; Please Michael, she's scared enough, she shouldn't go in there alone." Michael seemed torn, but his girlfriend's pleading eyes made the decision for him. He nodded dutifully and disappeared from her line of vision.

Nikita slowly turned, folding her arms as she looked up at the sky. It was a plenty clear day; a few typical white clouds painted in the blue backdrop, but no rain, no large gusts of wind, just a beautiful day. But beautiful days, beautiful moments, don't always last. Storms come along and something threatens the beauty in an unapologetic way. Ever since she entered Divisions, there were too many losses, too many storms, too many rain clouds that imposed upon her life. Losing Michael, losing Daniel, coming close to losing Alex many times, those were the catastrophes that erupted her life in recent years, but there were never only three disturbances in weather and the same went for life.

"Operation Confirmation" was scheduled for exactly 17 days from the one she was presently in. Post 408 hours, she would either be celebrating or, in a worst case scenario, dead whther it be physically or emotionally. She was smarter than Percy, as was Michael and Alex, and you could never underestimate the devil because that was suicide in itself. Maybe this was one of the reasons she was so nervous about Alex's surgury. Not only was it a risky one, but it made this mission real- the danger was real.

Releasing a heavy breath, she thought about the negative actions that could occur. Nikita was hardly a pessimist, but she had to be realistic, especially when it came to the ones she loved. She smiled to herself, Michael was usually the bluntly realistic one, while she was always confident- irony was a funny thing sometimes.

Speaking of Michael, he quietly exited the door to see Nikita's back to it. He walked up slowly, and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. She jumped at first, less than a second away from fighting mode, but when his husky voice reassured her it was him, she relaxed into the embrace.

"Did she get in OK?" She asked, her head leaning against his chest feeling it's movement as he chuckled.

"You mean from the five second walk into the room? Yes, she's fine."

"You know what I mean," She elbowed him gently.

He placed a kiss on her temple, "Yeah I do."

Alex's eyes gradually opened. Her head was throbbing, but medication was a magical tool as she felt like her body was lying on a cloud instead of a hospital bed. She heard voices, but they didn't register until her eyes focused to see Michael and Nikita sitting on a small sofa across the room from her bed.

"I told you you'd wake her up," Michael mumbled and Nikita's head spun to see Alex staring at them.

"Hey," She whispered, walking towards her recovering friend, "You feeling OK?"

"I feel like I just took a hit and than got hit by a bus," Alex answered groggily and Nikita couldn't help but giggle, "Is it out?"

"It is," Michael confirmed, taking a standing position beside Nikita.

"Yay," The youngest agent in the room smiled doppily into her pillow, "Take that Percy, you evil toad."

Even Michael couldn't disguise a chortle at that drugged response, "Evil toad?"

"Evil toad and evil Mal.. Ma.. what was the name of the dragon in that one Disney movie? The one with the girl and the boy and the kiss and the dragon?"

"Maleficent?"

Alex's eyes widened to the size of a baseball when it registered Michael had been the one to answer, "Yeah! How did you know that?"

Michael shifted back and forth on his feet, clearly uncomfortable with the question. Nikita saw his inner turmoil shine through again and it was understandable why. Sleeping Beauty had been Haley's favorite, he told her this after she happened to find an Aurora doll hidden in the closet of his apartment- it was his first purchase once he graudated to agent at Division.

"Nevermind that," She changed the subject and Michael mouthed a silent 'thank you' to her, "Can I get you anything? You hungry? Thirsty?"

"Sleepy," The light haired brunette replied with voice reminiscent of a child's, "Can you tuck me in?"

Nikita smiled and gently pulled the sheets up to efficiently cover her, "Get a good night's sleep." She kissed Alex's forehead resumed her place on the sofa and saw Michael cuatiously approach the side of the bed.

"You did good today," Michael informed and the half asleep teen smiled, "Goodnight." He brushed a brown lock out of her face and than made his way next to Nikita.

She smiled at her boyfriend, "That couldn't have been easy."

"I hadn't done something like that in a long time, not sure if I ever will again," His gloomy tone broke Nikita's heart, but she simply reached out her hand to grasp his.

"You will, trust me."

And he understood exactly what she meant.

"Once Nikita gets word of this mission, she'll be running to the rescue as usual; Thats when we'll strike. Michelle will be the decoy recruit, if Nikita goes with the car, the two of them will be blown to bits. If that fails, Justin and Marcus will appear and shoot from behind, as Carlotta and Ian ambush from the front. Never underestimating the street trash's abilities though, we have a special assest on hand to assist in finishing the job."

"And if Nikita succeeds?"

"That won't happen."

"Percy, she's survived plenty of grimmer obstacles; we taught her well."

"Yes, but now she has two weaknesses that will end up being her down fall."

Looking at the monitors in the Operations room, Nikita, Alex, and Michael's pictures were all displayed. There were only three people in the computer surrounded room, and the only one remaining silent?

Seymour Birkoff.

(A/N: I am SOOO extremely sorry for the lack of updates, I promise to try and stay consistant from now on, but this fic should be wrapped up in about 4 chaps. so not that much longer. Its a shorter update, I hope you guys don't mind :D Oh also please keep in mind that Alex is still under sedation so thats why she acts funny in this chap. It may or may not be based off of personal experience after a surgury! hehe. As always, tell me what you think through a review or Twitter, don't matter!)


	12. Derail In Derailing Confirmation

(A/N: OK first off, a HUGE apology for not updating this in such a long time! Fanfics wise, I've been a mega roll with Team Nikita and as a result this one has fallen SO behind. But with 3 chapters after this, I promise to try and keep the updates more consistant til the end :) Also, there was some confusion regarding the last chapter. In the last scene it was Percy, Amanda, and Birkoff looking at pictures of Nikita, Michael, and Alex all projected onto the screen. What that means, well you'll figure it out hehe)

"It's so good to be home," Alex sighed, settling on a large chair in the lair. Nikita laughed, following her prized pupil into the spacious area. The 19-year-old propped her feet onto a stool in front of her, but relaxation was short lived as her mentor's voice broke through.

"Don't forget you'll have to get back to your Division 'home' soon."

Alex rolled her eyes and made a gagging motion, "Why'd you have to remind me?"

"Because its and just because your kill chip is out doesn't mean you're not still a double agent."

"I know, I know." Nikita detected the disappointment in her protege's tone and she smiled sympathetically down at the young woman.

"Hey," She began, nudging Alex's leg before occupying the seat beside her, "It'll be over soon; Operation Confirmation will be over and that-"

"That will end either one of two ways: saving the recruits and running like hell or all of us, those kids included, blowing up."

"It'll only end ONE way- innocent people saved and Percy kicking himself. And the three of us won't exactly be running, this fight is far from over."

"Good because I didn't eat that awful cafeteria food for months to not bring this bastard down."

Nikita smirked at the sentiment, but still trying to mask her secret pride, "Careful, you're starting to sound like me." Alex giggled, pulling her feet from the stool to rest beneath her body, but the movement accidentally irritated her surgical wound. She cringed and fingered the bandaged area on her neck. "Still hurts?" Her mentor questioned and Russian native shrugged.

"Just sore, but knowing it was successfully removed outweighs the discomfort."

"Well as much as I admire your thick skin, come here, I wanna check it out."

"Nikita," Alex groaned in protest, hating being treated like child.

Nikita tipped her head with a warning stare, but softened and simply sighed, "Fine, but I'll just tell Michael when he comes here tonight."

At this threat her student's eyes widened slightly, intimidation rising within her. "But..." She finally sighed defeatedly, shifting in the chair as Nikita scooted closer to achieve a more gainful view. "You know this whole 'my-two-instructors-being-in-love' thing SEEMED like a good idea..."

"More protection," The rogue agent pointed out.

"More like OVER-protection," Alex chuckled, but sobered quickly "But in all seriousness though, I do really appreciate eveyrthing you and Michael have done for me; I'll never be able to thank either of you enough."

"You don't have to thank us at all," Examining the stitching, everything appeared normal for the amount of time that had lapsed. A relieved Nikita reapplied the gauze, "Everything is healing like Estaban said it would."

Alex thanked her and resumed her original sitting position, "So since my tracker is out, how does this work? Won't Division-"

Her question was interrupted and inadvertantly answered when Nikita retrieved a tiny piece of technology from her pocket that the light brunette correctly assumed to be her removen tracker. "A parting gift from Estaban and bloodless too," Michael's girlfriend admired, passing the micropchip to her partner who inspected it while Nikita continued, "Now you keep that with you, we'll monitor the status just as we had before."

"You mean when I could have been killed faster then Amanda could say 'eye shadow'?"

"Right, but there's no need to worry about that now."

"Yeah and we have more important things to focus on anyway. So sensei, did you and Michael figure out how we're gonna derail Confirmation?"

/  
Michael's hands gripped the railing overlooking the training arena. He noted five of the numerous recruits to be the ones soon to be sent out on a mission that would forever change his life. The sixth and final recruit, a young girl named Michelle, rounding out the team appeared, no doubt emerging from Amanda's chambers. He felt a pang of guilt as he watched her happily start sparring with Jaden. Nikita and him had strategized well enough to confirm that the only thing to be scathed during Confirmationw ould be Percy's ego, however, if there was one misstep taken one or all of these kids would be uselessly slained; worse than that he could lose Nikita, but he would make sure he did everyhting in his power to ensure that wouldn't happen- he would not lose her again.

His deep thoughts were intruded upon when another body rammed into him. "Oh man, I'm so sorry! You alright? Mikey, dude, I didn't mean-"

"Birkoff," Michael growled, his friend's anxious rambling giving him a headache, "Its fine, just learn to walk properly before you do any actual damage."

"Always lookin' out for me, bro. Even when dealing with the teenieboppers and the evil eye looking down on us."

"Percy or Amanda?" Michael whispered amused and the nerd chortled.

"They're not a joint being?" The men shared a smirk, Birkoff's twitching in pain as his eyes trailed from his co-workers, "Uh listen, I.. uh.. I should uh.. go."

Michael noted the continuing apprehension in the tech geek's eyes beyond his specks. He was shaky, skiddish, and self conscious, three characteristics that we not attached to describing Birkoff. Holding up his hand to cease him from passing, Michael's brow furrowed.

"Syemour," He addressed sternly and Birkoff immediately tensed.

"Aw damn, you only use that name when you're pissed."

"Not pissed- concerned. What's going on with you? If you're unfocused, you could put this establishment in jeapardy and with Confirmation approaching, we cannot afford-"

But at the mention of the complicated op, Birkoff seemed to become increasingly aggitated and before Michael could get out another word, the computer whiz managed to flee past him.

As the Division 2nd in command spun around to catch him, he instead found Amanda blocking his path. "Amanda," He nodded cordially and her typical cold smiled painted itself on her lips.

"Michael," She replied, a chill breezing from the icy demeanor she possesse, "Percy wishes to speak with you in his office- now." Her punctuated "now", didn't leave much to the imagination and Michael took the hint, nodding once again and heading in the direction of his boss's headquarters.

/  
After knocking and awaiting the approval to enter, Michael walked into Percy's office. "You wanted to see me, sir?" He dutifully reported, claiming his position in front of the immense desk the head honcho sat behind.

Percy grinned, tapping at his keyboard as his employee stood silent. He closed the laptop after, from Michael's perspective, typing a lengthy sentence, but a grin was plastered to his face, "Michael, punctual and obidient as as always; You;ve been an excellent soldier over the years and I admire that."

"Thank you, sir."

"Except your.. addiction to Nikita is a problem that we should have remedied a long time ago."

Michael's eyes narrowed, confusion overwhelming and instincts told his hand to reach for his gun. However, before he could even grip his weapon all he remembered was a shot and then darkness enveloping him.  



	13. Haunting Pasts

(A/N: Everyone keep in mind this was BEFORE 1x17 so the events of that episode DID NOT OCCUR IN THIS STORY. lol. Just making that clear. I think I just spoiled some of this chapter. LOL)

/  
"Yes, I put in the call to her and she assured me she would come in promptly."

"Amanda, do not be overly confident."

"You think she won't come?"

"If Nikita realizes her boy toy is MIA-"

"Not to worry, I took care of that."

"Ah always a step ahead, no wonder I keep you around here."

"We do make an excellent team."

This was the nauseating conversation Michael faintly heard when slowly awakening from his unconscious state. His head was throbbing, his body weak, and he felt cold metal encircling his wrists.

"Get a room," He mumbled, his eyes fluttering open. This grabbed the attention of the two Division heads as they turned to look at him; niether seemed affected by his snarky comment.

"Michael, lovely of you to join us," Amanda greeted with her typical coolness and Percy had a perfect smirk to match his co-conspirator's forced grin, "Percy, would like me to handle this?"

However, the honcho held up his hand, shooing away Amanda, yet keeping his eyes fixated on the former soldier. Amanda took the hint and sauntered out of the room, leaving Percy and Michael alone.

/  
"Yo! Birkoff!" Alex accosted, rushing into the nearly empty Operations room, "Geez where is everyone?" Birkoff, the lone person in the room, didn't acknowledge her prescene, irritating the 19-year-old, "Birkoff!"

"What do you want, recruit?" The nerd snapped, his eyes refusing to remove themselves from the computer.

Alex scoffed, "First off, I'm an agent."

"Wow, bully for you- that means nothing to me."

Ignoring the unwarranted attitude, she proceeded with her original purpose for seeking guidance in the monitor garnished room, "Have you seen Amanda? She asked me to come in, but she wasn't in her office."

Hearing the psychologist's name, Birkoff was forced to contemplate the on-going events he had tried avoiding in his thoughts. He knew why Amanda was requesting Alex report to the headquarters; he assumed Michael had already fallen prey to the bosses clutches.

He rotated in his seat, fully prepared to advise Nikita's protege to go to Amanda's chambers again. If he didn't do that, he'd be Roan's next cleaning and he had to protect himself before this imposter.

But the problem was, when he finally looked at the woman in front of him, she was no longer Alex. She had already sat in the chair beside him, peet perched on the desk in a way that invoked an intense case of deja vu.

No, this was not Alex, it was Nikita circa 2005.

/  
2005 was a successful year for Division. Nikita, the prized pupil of the organization, completed back-to-back missions that even the most experienced agents would fail at. Michael, the previously broody, stoic handler, was more enthusiastic than ever. Birkoff himself was even at the top of his game, improving the facilty cyberly, daily. Individually they were great, but when the threesome were together? It was legendary, both work wise and occasionally, fun wise.

It was late July when Nikita bounced into Operations- after hours (as she regularly did).

"Missed me, Nerd?"

Birkoff rolled his eyes, yet a reluctant grin possessed his lips; He had missed her, but he'd never admit it, "Babe, I'm not Mikey. I don't mope when you're deployed on month long assignments." He was able to verbalize these scandalous comments since they were the only two in the room and if any secruity feed caught it, he would delete it as usual.

"Whatever you say,"She smirked, clearly not buying his statement. She flopped down on the chair next to the computer whiz, kicking her feet onto the desk.

"Hey! Stilletoes away from the equipment!" He objected anxiously, eyeing the proximity of her overpriced shoes to his babies. In response, she slid her the heels off, but her bare feet remained on the table, "If you break any-"

"Like this place doesn't have enough dough to replace one of your stupid computers."

"Don't call them stupid just because you can't master the art of anything technological."

"Like I'd need to, its why I have nerds like you do it."

"Won't get ya very far Niki. What if I'm not there for you someday?"

"Pfft. You'll always be there, but wouldn't you be surprised if I could actually get something past you dumb ass 'shadowpuppet'?"

"Why do you and your boyfriend constantly mock the Shadownet? Its saved both your asses before!"

"Because its ridiculous that you named a software Shadownet," A new voice emerged and Birkoff and Nikita's playful banter was interrupted. They both looked to see Michael entering and Birkoff observed the two agents lit up upon seeing one another.

Hesitant to show any affection within Division walls, they stared at one another, speechless. Finally their co-worker spoke up, "For the love of Shadownet, no one's here! Just hump eachother already so you can knock it off with the love lorn eye contact- its gross." Nikita tore her eyes from Michael long enough to reach over and jab her fist into Birkoff's gut. The tech geek involuntarily hunched over to ease the rush of pain to his abdomen. But he was still able to catch the view of an ecstatic Nikita leaping from her seat and an equally relieved Michael lifting her up in his arms.

It was a rare sight to see two badass agents with enough emotional baggage each to fill the Division facility two times over, actually bask in a moment of genuine happiness. He heard the duo whisper back and forth; more than likely Michael in is general overprotective way, questioning if Nikita was alright on/after her assignment.

They finally detached post another minute of embrace, "Its about time, I knew I shouldn't have encouraged.. that. If I wanted to see an overdrawn lovefest, I'd download Friends- the Ross and Rachel years."

"Aw Nerd, don't be jealous. A woman will touch you someday, I mean, how else will you get a bath in the nursing home?"Michael snickered at the joke, squeezing Nikita whose back was pressed against his chest and his arms secured around her waist.

Birkoff scoffed, "Yeah, like any of us will live long enough to see a liver spot."

Annoyed he was unaffected by a perfect insult, Nikita attempted another, "Speak for yourself! We can defend ourselves."

"Uh huh and when technology controls every aspect of the world someday, I think you'll be regretting your choice of Division bed fella," He winked and Nikita mock gagged.

"Only in your dreams, Nerd!"

"Every night, Niki!"

Michael scowled, "Don't you have enough Swedish images to occupy you?"

"Jealous Mikey?"

"Of Heidi and Hilda? Michael's standards are not that low." At her statement, Birkoff, mouth agape, glared at Michael.

"Dude! You told her about the twins?"

Michael and Nikita burst into a fit of laughter, explaining she was joking. The embarrassed nerd chuckled, claiming to just playing into the jest.

/  
That night was always a unique, treasured memory to Birkoff. The threesome ended up remaining at Division until dawn. Laughing, talking, going to the training room and sparring. He glanced down at his forearm were a small scratch from the night was permanently embedded in his skin. And now those two badass agents, those two lovebirds, those two individuals that were the closest thing resembling family, were in trouble. Niki had said Birkoff would always be there for him, he had silently agreed. Did she misplace her trust? Did he lie to himself? Or was he ultimately just too cowardly to save his friends?

Snapping out of his flashback, Birkoff saw Alex staring at him expectantly. Making a quick decision, Seymour pushed himself away from the computer and instructed Alex to follow him. Baffled, the young agent tried to question his reasons, but with the nerd speedily exiting Operations, she had to foucs on keeping up with him. Leading her down to the sound proof, surveillance-less, and private shooting range.

The Russian native whipped around after walking through the entrance, "What the hell is going on?"

/  
"How did you find out?" Michael snarled in a low voice. Being cuffed to a chair in Percy's office left little options for anything but a confrontation.

Percy appeared amused by the question posed to him, "About the street whore?" Michael reactively lunged forward, lapsing on the fact that he was in restraints. Feeling a mixutre of defeat and anger, he shut his eyes tightly in an attempt to erase his previous actions. Percy on the other hand was feeling nothing but joy and satisfaction in his former second-in-command's anguish. He displayed this by chuckling softly, "She was always you're weakness; you're kryptonite."

"Kryptonite?" Michael scoffed, "Who are you? A 13-year-old boy?"

"No, see that would be you. Its disgusting, really. You allowed your hormones to cloud your judgement, pesky emotions to overrideyour duties as a soldier, and were brainwashed by a glorified prostitute with a gun!" But Michael didn't react, he controlled himself, knowing it was the opposite of what the bastard wanted, but that didn't stop the evil mastermind, "So you're sex kitten doesn't get a rise out of you anymore? Hmm... perhaps two girls you've seemingly forgot about will." Michael's brow furrowed, baffled by the comment.

Suddenly, the door to Percy's office opened, revealing the one person Michael abhorred more than his boss. He was then trying desperately to escape his shackles; Bucking, squirming, ignoring any potential physical ailments that could strike him from his violent movements. "You son of a bitch!" He hollered fiercely, the words barely able to make it out of his mouth.

"Hello Michael," The man responded with ease, furthering infuriating the one he was greeting.

"I believe you know my friend, my employee for over a decade," Percy smirked, his hand resting on the shouldar of the man, "Kasim Tariq, the man who indirectly killed your family while trying to fulfil MY orders to take you out. Well, what were their names? Lizzie? Haley?" Michael felt sick, too disgusted, angered, and shocked to even verbalize words in a reply, but his stomach really dropped at the words that spilled from Percy's mouth after, "He may not have aimed at your dearly deceased wife and daughter, but tonight, he WILL aim at Nikita- and theres not a damn thing you can do about it." 


	14. Where We Belong

"So help me understand this: Percy and Amanda KNOW about EVERYTHING and are setting Michael, Nikita, and me up?" Alex was completely dumbstruck by the entire scenario that Birkhoff had laid out for her; it didn't help that the nerd was talking a mile a minute.

But despite that fact, he glared at her from behind his specks, "Were you involved in an explosion that damaged your hearing or are you just stupid?"

"Sorry! You're not exactly explaining this well!"

"Mikey and Niki are in deep shit- how much simpler can it get?"

Alex swallowed hard, thinking about the situation and finally realizing the severity. Trying to keep her composure, she locked eyes with Birkhoff, "Whats going to happen? Where's Michael?"

"They have him. He's in Satan's office, that's probably where Medusa is too."

"Which is why she wasn't in her office, dammit! Well what about Nikita? I just saw her..."

"Pretty sure they're setting a booby trap for her becausre luring in you and Mikey, she wouldn't exactly have a lot of help."

"Well she does now, so what do we do?"

"Woah, woah, woah- 'we'?"

"Oh don't even try it, you're already in this so damn right you're going to help."

"Geez, you really are a mini-Niki," He rolled his eyes before releasing a lingering sigh, "Fine, got any ideas AGENT?"

Alex shifted on her feet, biting her bottom lip nervously. She had always normally had Nikita to rely on for life or death situations like these, "How do you feel about explosives?"

"Son of a bit-" Michael growled viciously, now thrashing against his restraints.

"Now, now," Percy began in his usual mocking tone, "Don't over exert yourself. After all, it won't help yourself or your bedmate."

"You touch one hair on her head and I will-" His threatening eyes were aiming at Kasim, who remained silent in the midst of his boss and former friend's exchange.

"You'll what?" Percy, an amused gleam in his eye to match his near cheerful voice, "Please, enlighten us on your masterplan to save your precious girlfriend when you can't even save yourself."

Michael seethed, biting the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood, just to stop himself from speaking. Grunting in frustration, he struggled in his metal cuffs while his mind contemplated a range of topics- how to kill the two bastards in front of him, how everything happened so quickly, but most importantly, how to save Nikita.

Kasim's smooth persuian voice shook Michael's attention back to him, "I understand you're upset, Michael. But everything in this life happens for a reason. You're wife and child.." Michael lunged forward, but was inevitibly held back, his enemy resuming his speech, "And now, Nikita. You must accept this, old friend."

The former Division, 2nd in command spat some cursewords, his eyes pinching shut as he tried to block an overwhelming vision of Nikita being in a car explosion as his family had; Her beautiful face turned to ash while Kasim and Percy looked on with pride. His stomach physically knotted and his ability to swallow became nonexistant.

He couldn't do it; He just got her back in his life, he couldn't lose her. Not like he lost Lizzie and Haley- not ever. She was the biggest part of his life, his heart, his soul. He didn't care about himself, only her. It was ALWAYS only her. Ever since she was a stubborn newbie under his watchful, handler eye, it was always just her.

His hands shook, continuing up to his wrists entrapped beneath the cuff. Hissing out from behind ground teeth, Michael's eyes darkened, "What do you want?"

"Nikita! Nikita!" Alex rushed into the loft, fear propelling her with great force as she ran into the large space. When there was no answer to her beckons, she ran her fingers through her brunette locks, breathing rapidly increasing. "Dammit!" She cursed to the empty space and whipped her phone out from her pocket. "Birkhoff!" She barked into the speaker, "She's NOT HERE! Please tell me everything is OK on your end, please! I'm going to try and track her down." She ended the one sided phone call and exited the lair.

Nikita lightly treaded on the location; her gun was loaded, well gripped in her capable hands. Her eyes searched the grounds, seeing very little to insinuate that this was a Division take down. It was back behind a run-down convience store, a bit off the beaten track from the city. Secluded, definitely an advantage for the black ops organization; Nikita was always prepared for a surprise though.

A car pulled onto the pavement and two young adults popped out, guns full blazing. Nikita didn't miss a beat, ducking behind a dumpster for cover and popping off bullet after bullet. One hit the man, the driver of the vehicle, directly in the chest. The tricky girl was harder though, Nikita having to shoot her in the thigh and then the abdomen before she finally fell to the ground.

As Nikita went to survey the scene, she suddenly sensed a prescene behind her. She whipped out, gun raised, but it was swiftly knocked from her hand. She blocked two right hook punches and a low kick.

"Listen, I can-" She blockes another hit and throws a few of her own, each unblockable by the recruit.

"I can help all of-" This kid would not give up, going for a round house kick before Nikita could even finish her last word. Grabbing the leg in mid-air, she twisted it, throwing him to the ground in the process. He screamed out in pain and Nikita knelt down, so she was face to face with him. "I can get you out of Division, all of you. You wouldn't have to do this, you wouldn't have to try and kill again."

The young guy, a blonde haired, green eyed kid that seemed to be no more than Alex's age, appeared to be listening. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, a bullet was sent through his head and Nikita rose up, eyes looking for the assailant. She felt a sharp pain to her back and realized it was a bullet and an excellent day to wear the bulletproof vest Michael provided for her.

But when she turned around, ready to aim for the person that tried to shoot her, she instantly a blow, that almost felt like a human elbow, piercing her the back of her head and everything faded to black.

"What I do for these people," Birkhoff huffed, crawling through the all-too-narrow-for-comfort air vents. It was unbelievable that after Niki's big escape a few months ago, they would still allow these ventilation systems to be so corruptable- than again, it was MICHAEL that headed the Nikita proofing.

The computer whiz shimmied through the paths, reaching the one that was directly assosciated to Percy's office. He pulled out the device, an instance of pure genius on his part. Alex had insisted on a different method, but he knew his had no room for failure. But as he made his way to the grate opening that peered into the head honcho's lair, he saw no one. No Michael, no Nikita, no Percy or Amanda.

"Shit!" He cursed under his breath and began to hurriedly leave.

Alex arrived at the spot, but to no sight of Nikita. She saw several dead bodies, recruits she had seen in passing at Division. She tried to regain her breathing, running to the location had left little room for normal intakes of oxygen. At her brief pause, her phone vibrated within her pocket. Retrieving it, she saw there was a text from Birkhoff.

OFFICE EMPTY. NO 1 THERE. WAT NOW MINI?  
-B

"UGH!" Alex practically yelled, nothing but anger and worry consuming her. She couldn't think of anything. Her mind was devoid of all thoughts, ideas, plans. Her mentor, the woman that saved her life many times was screwed and there nothing she could do. Michael, the only person within Division she trusted and the man who helped her a lot was in the same dire situation. She was losing another family, another set of parents almost. Michael and Nikita belonged together, Alex knew that, but not in the afterlife. Not before they got to experience a real life outside of Division. And selfishly, Alex wanted that too. For her and her surrogate family to be happy and free, but how could that happen if she couldn't even locate the couple?

She looked down at her phone and swallowed hard, her fingers typing in a reply to Birkhoff.

B THERE SOON. -A

Nikita's eyes opened, albeit with a hazy vision to start. Her head was pounding profusely and she attempted to lift her hand, but found it was strapped behind her; her legs faced the same situation. She tried to wriggle in the chair, but it was no use. She assessed her surroundings- a dark room, stone block walls, no furniture.

Division. She was in Division. Their plan had worked, she was there, they had captured her. Her chest constricted, an distaste filling her mouth. There was no way out and even worse, she had no idea where Alex and Michael were. Tears formed in her eyes, thoughts of Michael and Alex being captured or worse. She knew she had to rid herself of any emotion. She couldn't allow Percy, Amanda, or any of them to affect her, especially if there was any chance she could save the man she loved and the young girl she had loved like a sister.

A large, metal door slowly opened- a gust of stale, bitter air rolling in with it. Percy wandered in, a smirked plastered to face as usual.

"What? No Amanda to welcome me back? I'm crushed," Nikita cracked darkly.

"No, I thought I should handled this, well, lets just say, delicate situation," Percy started, his mock sympathic inflection on the word 'delicate' sending a new rush of hatred and extreme through Nikita; he was obviously talking about the two people Nikita loved most in the world, "I assume you already know why your dear knight in shining armor did not come to you rescue."

"Where is he?" She growled, she was not going to play Percy's game when it came to Michael; she couldn't afford the cost.

"Wouldn't you like to know," He winked, walking closer to her.

"What about Alex?"

"Never showed up, I was sure she would. Its quite disappointing."

"So you have your hound dogs out there looking for her?"

Percy waved off her accusation, "Please. Your recruit is barely a blip on the radar. I must say, she was impressive, but not quite up to your standards, I'm a little hurt you didn't train her as well."

"Obviously I trained her better than I thought- you don't have her."

"Ah, thats right, but I do have Michael."

"Tell me what you want, Percy," She was past impatience. She was furious, she was scared, she was anxious. Michael was in trouble and at the moment she was physically unable to help him, "I am the reason he betrayed you, I deserve whatever your sick ass mind thinks up- lets settle between US."

"As much as I wish I could blame Michael's tarnished potential on you, he was always weak. Always letting emotions get the best of him- its sickening. Your honey trap waltzing in here just peaked his downfall, but it was invitable really."

"What do you want me to do? What will it take for you to let Michael go, Percy?"

"Aww, thats so sweet. Your boy toy was willing to go the distance for you also."

"Well don't listen to him. You want me. You could care less about anything else," Nikita spat, tension mounting in the room, "It wasn't just the past few months; I was on your mind as soon as you realized I had escaped. My memory knawed at you, every second of the day. 'How could one of MY agents get out?' 'How could Nikita escape?' Face it, Percy, I was the best you ever had at this miserable place and I was so good, I was able to breeze past you. That has to sting, a 20-something year old girl proving you're nothing but a tired, old man with no control whatsoever."

"Big words from someone who wants to save MY prisoner," Percy responded cooly, but Nikita did not quiver.

"Exaclty, let Michael go and we can do this, because whether you kill Michael or me, you won't win. You don't have the box, you're in jeopardy, you're once again vulnerable, Percy." She was almost shaking, her nerves getting the best of her, but anger trumping it. She needed to protect Michael and she knew Percy wasn't going to kill him, because Nikita would have no reason to live, but always a reason to die with the location of the box.

Percy stomped up to her, looking down at her and she noticed his eyes enflamed with fury- she had gotten to him, "I will NEVER be vulnerable."

Nikita showed her own smirk to him, but suddenly the large door cracked open again. Nikita's face drained of any pride she might have felt for getting a one up on Percy, because Michael was being dragged in. His legs and feet were shackled, he was bruised, and Kasim Tariq was handling him- a gun in his hand and to Michael's back.

"Michael," She breathlessly called out and he merely mouthed, "I love you" to her.

Percy's victorious voice broke the overwhelming silence after, "So you were saying, someone is vulnerable?"

"Alex, this is quite a surprise. You're late," Amanda's voice naturally flowed, seeing Alex sitting upon the couch of her office.

Alex, shaking, held up in her left hand, the coveted black box, "Where are they?"

Birkhoff's fingers pounded onto the keys of his precious computers, nothing moving as fast as he desperately needed it to even though any other normal day, this was the fastest system he's ever known.

Cameras. He searched every camera tape, every hall way, every room, there was no sign of Michael or Nikita. But he knew secrets no one else knew about this place, not even the commander-in-chief.

"C'mon baby," He spoke to his machines, "Don't fail me now."

Tap, tap, pound. Tap, tap, pound. Tap, tap, pound. The keys were the only noise, not even Birkhoff's breathing or heart beat was audible to him.

"Gotcha!"

"Ofcourse," Nikita scoffed, "Ofcourse YOU would be behind Michael's family dying!"

"Actually, it was more of an unintentional error, but eh," Percy casually shurgged, "What can you do, right?"

His venemous smile made Nikita physically ill, so she glued her eyes to Michael instead. Their eyes were locked, attempting to think of something, anything, to rescue the other; hell, even just REACH eachother.

"Nikita, ah, the little warrior from Ubekistan," Kasim commented out of the blue and the femme fatale watched her boyfriend's jaw tighten.

Her eyes left Michael's momentarily, opting to look at Kasim, "Thats right, and my one regret from that trip is not getting my 'warrior' hands on you."

"You insult my best employee like that? I always knew you were inconsiderate trash," Percy stated and Michael rotated his head to look at him.

"She's not a piece of shit like you, though."

Percy, in retort, smiled and nodded to Kasim, who shoved the barrel of the gun deeper into Michael's lower back. Nikita took in a sharp breath, involuntarily. Michael and her eyes flew to one another, tears forming in both. He could distinctly tell by her shaking head and pleading eyes that he be careful; she knew from his ever stoic response that he wouldn't just abide by Kasim and Percy, but she hoped he would, more than anything.

"Enough of the chit-chat," Percy said, obviously gaining in impatience, despite his manipulative fun, "Where is the box?"

"Destroyed," Nikita responded in a lower volume than before.

"Where. Are. Michael. And. Nikita?" Alex demanded, the box in her firm grasp.

Amanda smirked, her high heels punctuating every step she took closer to Alex, who simply backed away, "Alex, be smart about this..."

"No, YOU be smart about this. One move and I can upload this box all over the world. Is that what you want? What PERCY wants?"

"And how do plan on accomplishing that?"

"Lets just say you're not the only one who has resources," Alex couldn't hide her pure joy over Amanda's, albeit, momentarily, shocked expression.

"Bluffing, a clever trick, Alex; you're more like a Division agent than you realize."

"I learned from the best manipulative assholes out there."

"Hand over the box and perhaps I can spare your life."

"I don't think you understand," Alex unbuttoned the top few hooks of her shirt, revealing a small mic, "I never bluff." Amanda's face darkend in expression as her former student continued, "If anything happens to me, if this mic is ripped off, if anyone so much as touches me or this box without my consent, the contents will send the world into chaos. You have the power to stop that, Amanda. You can keep your precious Division a secret and protect those dear innocent souls you care soo much about." At her sarcastic quip, Amanda's eyes narrowed, but it didn't faze the 19-year-old. "Everyone makes choices in life, whats yours?"

"What do you mean its destroyed?" Percy's voice boomed throughout the basement dungeon, the other two men staring just as expectantly at Nikita.

"Gone, in pieces, never to be fixed again. You have no leverage here, Percy. Let Michael go," Nikita stated, Michael wanting desperately to voice an objection, but his girlfriend's eyes begging him not to.

"Well I should just kill you both then! Good for nothing, idiots! Kasim-" But Percy's complaint was immediately cut off by a sudden spout of rapid gunfire and Nikita's face dropped as she saw what she was witnessing.

"Hand me the box and I will give you descriptive instructions on how to arrive at Michael and Nikita's location," Amanda reasoned, eyes on the box and nothing else.

"Doesn't work like that, take me to them FIRST," Alex instructed,but looked down at the box, eyeing it carefully before holding it out to Amanda, "Alright, fine. Take it."

Amanda smiled with her usual icy demeanor, snatching the box from Alex's hand, "Very good, Alex. I think with the right conditioning, you could still be a valuable asset to this agency."

"Where are Michael and Nikita?"

Amanda's smile grew, "You should Alex, I ALWAYS bluff."

And with that she flew from the room, Alex immediately hearing the the barrior locking of the door that Division only used upon emergency situations- it was imperiable to escape, but Alex maintained a smile, "So do I, Amanda."

"What the hell were you thinking?" Nikita screeched, her body shaking from head to toe.

"I just saved both your asses and THATS your greeting to me?" Birkhoff's insulted face demanded, completely beffudled by the response to him being a savior.

Michael, who was now on the floor, proceeding to get up, with assistance from the nerd, "You almost killed us both!"

"Hey! I have bettter aim than that!"

"Keep thinking that, Nerd."

"It worked didn't it? You both are still breathing, aren't you?"

"We're both still shackled so its a little hard for me to jump for joy over your big hero moment," Michael snarled, turning his back to Birkhoff where his hands were still tightly wrapped behind him.

Birkhoff, taking out the appropriate tools to release both Michael and Nikita, rolled his eyes, "Let me reiterate, I saved both your asses from certain death."

In a second, Michael was freed from both arms and leg retrainsts and Birkoff worked on Nikita's, who smirked, "Fine, you did good, Nerd."

"Good enough to not be called, nerd?"

"Never," She winked and she was freed despite Birkhoff's huff of frustration. Once alleviated from the constraints, Nikita stood and wrapped her arms around her favorite nerd, "Thank you."

"Thats more like it," Birkhoff said, returning the embrace, "I missed ya, Niki."

They pulled apart and Nikita smiled at him before punching him hard in the arm, "But next time be more careful, trigger finger!"

Birkhoff scowled at her and she just smiled, looking past him at the man she loved. It only took an instant, a blink, for Nikita to be running into Michael's arms. He held her fiercely, his arms securely around her lower back, her legs tied around his hips. Tears sprang to both their eyes, realizing they were finally free and finally together.

"I love you so much," Michael whispered hoarsely, tickling her ears with his warm breath.

"I love you too," Nikita moaned, feeling as if her arms could not lace around his neck more than they were, but wanting to be even closer to him. They each retracted their heads a tad, to face eachother and were swept into a magical lip lock, full of passion, desire, and love.

"Gross," Birkhoff mocked gagged, "But hey, lovebirds, we gotta get going because part two of this nifty little plan is about to set off."

"Whats part two?" But Michael's question went unanswered as they left the room, trailing behind the tech geek.

"Its about time!" Alex exclaimed exasperately, flinging herself from Amanda's couch as Michael, Nikita, and Birkhoff entered the office.

Nikita made a beeline for Alex, her arms instantly around her, "I'm so sorry" she muttered into the young girl's hair.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, I'm just glad you're OK," They seperated and Alex looked at the men, "All of you."

"So this was part two? Rescuing Alex?" Michael asked, turning to Birkhoff.

"Not exactly," Birkhoff smirked, matching Alex's.

"Whats going on?" Nikita now asked and her protege shrugged.

"Birkhoff and I may have put a bomb in a fake black box that Amanda just took down to whereever you guys were being held."

Michael and Nikita looked dumbstruck, "Are you serious?"

"Yup, stilletto bitch will get down there and KABOOM!" Birkhoff demonstrated, using his hands to simulate an explosion.

"And you guys went through all of this for us?" Nikita's lip quivered, a feeling of protection and love she had never had before, a family she had never had before.

"We weren't just going to let two of our favorite people die," Alex smiled, her arm wrapping around Nikita's shouldar, "You guys belong together, all of us do."

"Theres few people to understand our mutual badassness," Birkhoff proudly stated and Nikita's eyebrows raised.

"Mutual?"

"Let it go," Michael advised, going over to her and kissing the side of her head as he went inbetween the girls, wrapping a arm around each of them.

"Aww thanks Mikey, but if we're done with the mushy-ness now, we really should get the hell outta here, put this place out of our minds forever."

"Consdiering we're all togetehr because of this awful place, I doubt thats possible," Alex responded but Birkhoff gave her an annoyed look.

"Well that doesn't mean I still want to be here, Mini Niki, so can we go please?"

And with that, the newly united, newly formed, alligiance of four left together, Division fading into the backround of their lives. It may have been where their relationships began, but it was not where they belonged- Michael and Nikita knew that better than anyone. And as the explosion happened, a loud sound unmistakenably heard in the distance, the couple kissed- if not for love and affection, but as one last sign of proof that Division was not the beginning or end of their lives- they were.

(A/N: THE END! well possibly. I have an epilogue written, but I'm not sure if I should post it or not. I could also make the epilogue an unrelated, oneshot which I personally think would be better, but I want YOUR feedback and def. give me feedback on this chap. I think from the content and length you can understand why it took me FOREVER to finish, but thank you so much for everyone who stuck it out esp. my Liis who is forever and ever amazing and awesome and I am so grateful for her support in my fics, even from the very beginning of this one! *hugs* ILY babe!) 


End file.
